I suppose there was never a chance of the Green Party making an impact in the upcoming provincial election. It's unlikely a third party could really get attention away from the sparring Sask Party and NDP, and even if one did the Greens are still a bit too fringe for many ridings. However, that said, I can't help but be disappointed in former provincial Green Party leader Larissa Shasko, who has resigned in order to support the campaign of Regina South NDP candidate Yens Pedersen.
The reason I'm disappointed is not because I thought she was an amazing leader who would lead the party to great things, nor is it due to any sense of attachment to her party. However, whether or not I support a party, I do expect a leader to resign in a manner that doesn't harm their party. I do not feel Shasko has managed to do that, and her timing and comments following her resignation indicate someone who did not take her responsibilities seriously enough in the time she was in charge.
First problem is the timing, as it is immediately before a provincial election. At this point, a party should be well into planning their campaign, all of the major parties have been working towards November's election date all year. Now, at the point when a party needs a leader most, Shasko is jumping ship. If she believed that her efforts were better spent elsewhere, she should have resigned long before the election campaign. In essence, she needed to give her party time to adjust to her departure and change their campaign, well before the election. The timing, as it is, was irresponsible.
It's the same problem with her comments following her resignation. In content, they indicated someone who was ill prepared to lead a political party. I'm unsure if she is trying to be naive or merely deflect blame, but one of her quotes goes as follows:
"It's a grassroots party, very much growing, where many people make decisions and yet I end up at the end of the day with the ultimate responsibility."
That is, in effect, what it means to be a leader of a political party. If she is frustrated with bearing the ultimate responsibility in a growing, grassroots party, it is perhaps better that she leaves before it can become larger, and have even more people who make decisions. Any political leader should know that they're going to bear that responsibility, and I can't help but wonder what Shasko thought she was getting into when she decided to lead the party. You will not see Brad Wall or Dwain Lingenfelter complaining that they have too much responsibility as the leaders of their respective parties, and they have even more people under them making more decisions which, as the two parties currently in the legislature, have greater impact.
Whether or not I agree with her political party or would have supported her political career had things stayed the same, the way Shasko is conducting herself as she leaves her post leaves something to be desired. Her departure is leaving the party weaker at a time when it needs strength, and her comments make it appear as though she is unable to handle the demands inherent in being a party leader. It might not have stood a chance in the coming election, but it's Shasko's responsibility, whether she likes it or not, to leave it in as strong a position as possible.
