A month after Alison Redford resigned from her position as Premier of Alberta, the Calgary-Elbow MLA has missed ten sessions of the Legislature and her colleagues have noticed the absence.
“I think the expectations are clear, not only for MLA's but for any Albertan who is employed,” said MLA Thomas Lukaszuk. “My constituents have a very clear expectation of me I imagine and that’s to show up at work every day. That's what taxpayers pay me for. If there was a serious health or personal issue I think my constituents would be very understanding of that but, in the absence of that, I think the expectation is clear.”
Redford has refused interview requests from CTV and other media outlets, and her public appearances have been sporadic.
The Calgary-Elbow MLA has removed the 'Premier' from her Twitter handle but Redford’s occasional tweets shed no light on her Question Period absences.
On Friday, Redford’s constituency office in Calgary was closed without explanation.
When asked about the Legislature absences, Premier Dave Hancock would not address Redford’s attendance record but said it was unfair of other MLA’s to be commenting on the situation.
“Each MLA chooses how and where to bring their talents forward,” said Premier Hancock. “What issues are important to their constituency, what committees they participate in. It's not really for one MLA to tell another MLA how to do their job.”
“When it comes to the session, it’s between an MLA and the speaker.”
With files from CTV's Chris Epp
