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Bill Kelly: Ford’s promise of transparency rings hollow

Ontario Premier Doug Ford makes an announcement in Astra, Ont., on Nov. 7, 2018. Global News

Let’s not get fooled again; Doug Ford‘s flimsy explanation for deceiving the public about his government’s sex scandals just doesn’t pass the smell test.

As we know, Ford’s office initially issued a statement that said that Jim Wilson was leaving cabinet to deal with addiction issues.

It wasn’t until Global News investigative reporting discovered that not only was Wilson canned for alleged inappropriate sexual advances toward a male staff member but that another senior staff member, Andrew Kimber, was turfed at the same time for sending sexual texts to five female MPPs.

It wasn’t until two days later, which was more than enough time for the Ford team to concoct a defence strategy, that Ford came clean about the actual facts.

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Ford claims he withheld the truth to protect the identities of the victims, insinuating that a cold-hearted media would create salacious headlines and plaster the names of victims in newscasts and newspapers.

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WATCH: Ford responds to allegations of sexual misconduct against Jim Wilson

Click to play video: 'Ford responds to allegations of sexual misconduct against Jim Wilson'
Ford responds to allegations of sexual misconduct against Jim Wilson

For the record, in the days since we’ve learned the truth about this coverup, no media outlet has published the names of any of the alleged victims.

It’s yet another example of Ford dodging legitimate media questions and instead simply repeating the same mundane talking points that his staff have prepared for him.

Sadly, Ford is acting more like a Stepford politician than a man for the people.

Withholding information from the public and holding closed-door investigations into alleged wrongdoings in his government is a far cry from the hollow promises of integrity and transparency that Ford promised Ontario voters.

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Bill Kelly is the host of the Bill Kelly Show on Global News Radio 900 CHML

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