The Newfoundland and Labrador Association of Public and Private Employees, also known as NAPE, has called out Premier Tony Wakeham for his response to minister Andrea Barbour’s statements towards the media twisting narratives.
Barbour, the Minister of Environment, Conservation and Climate Change for the provincial government, took aim at the press, stating that they twisted information to fit their own narratives and agendas.
This came after The Independent discovered government documents stating that the province will not meet its climate targets. For more information on that, check out The Independent’s article on the subject.
Included in a statement from NAPE, Wakeham’s response to the matter was the following:
“Let’s set the record straight. I spoke to the media yesterday; I held a scrum out in the lobby of Confederation Building here yesterday. I spoke to the media. And we will speak, and my ministers will speak any time in the media when we have something to tell them.”
NAPE was not overly impressed with this response, as they issued a statement on Monday to respond to these comments from the Premier.
“We call on Premier Wakeham and his Ministers to engage openly and honestly with the people of Newfoundland and Labrador and quit the attacks and attempts to vilify journalists who have important work to do,” said NAPE in their official statement. “Workers deserve answers, not distractions.”
NAPE called for the Premier and other members of the provincial government to “stop the accusations against our local Newfoundland and Labrador journalists and conduct themselves in a manner that enhances public confidence in our democracy.“
NAPE is one of five unions currently negotiating new Collective Bargaining Agreements with Memorial, alongside CUPE, TAUMUN, MUNFA, and LUMUN.