The Editors: Green statement falls short

Elected representatives owe their duties to the public first and foremost

The Green Party’s co-leaders today issued a statement regarding shoplifting allegations involving their justice spokesperson, Golriz Ghahraman. Their account of things leaves much to be desired in terms of transparency and accountability. The public deserves better.

The party claims to have been made aware of the allegations on 27 December but made no public comment. It is further claimed that this public silence was observed out of respect for the wishes of Scotties Boutique.

But the wishes of the claimed victim are not the end all and be all of the duties that the Greens have in this situation. The party also owes a duty to uphold the public trust. That entails a duty of transparent and plain dealing when it comes to matters of genuine public concern.

The allegations against Ms. Ghahraman are not of a sensitive nature, such as abuse or harassment. Those types of allegations will frequently justify private handling. What has been alleged, however, involves the conduct of a public representative in a public space, right before that public representative left the country.

As justice spokesperson for the Greens, Ms. Ghahraman held a critical role in shaping and communicating the party's stance on law and order. A decision to stand her down in relation to claims of conduct that directly touches on her portfolio is significant. Some minimal degree of transparency in respect of such matters is rightly expected.

The late disclosure, which only occured after the matter was raised by ZB+, speaks to the credibility of the party as a whole. It raises questions about whether the public would have been informed at all had the media not reported on the issue first. After all, the statement today indicates that the party knew there were multiple incidents despite this seemingly not being disclosed in its initial response to the story when it was raised yesterday.

We may now rightly wonder whether the Greens are across additional details that are still being withheld on the basis that they have yet to be reported on. We cannot assume that the Greens are being forthcoming. That trust will have to be re-earned before it can be extended again.

If nothing else, this is a stark reminder that public faith in political institutions hinges not only on their public stance on principles but also on how they uphold these principles when faced with uncomfortable situations. The Green Party is far from the only offender in this regard.

But that is not good enough.