Fortin's departure the latest debacle for Canada's moribund military

To see a once-great and venerable institution brought to its knees in front of the entire country is indeed a tragedy.

And that is the fate which has befallen the Canadian Armed Forces.

Once one of the world’s most powerful armed forces, which participated in some of the most important battles of world history, the CAF is now consumed by scandal.

It seems every day brings a new example of a top official being removed, or being put under the cloud of an investigation.

Political correctness has spread rapidly among the top brass of the CAF, further pushing its image away from the actual job of using violence if necessary to defend the Canadian People (the fundamental purpose of every military), to a seeming social experiment in injecting "wokeness" into every institution regardless of consequence.

And now, there’s another debacle.

Major General Dany Fortin – who had been heading Canada’s vaccine logistics at the Public Health Agency of Canada – is being removed from the role.

According to the Department of National Defence, Fortin now faces a military investigation.

This is bad for multiple reasons.

First, if Fortin was seen as the best person for the job, his replacement will almost by definition end up being worse.

Second, Fortin’s role was one of the few potentially positive stories for the military, as he was a widely visible example of someone in the CAF playing what many see as a positive role.

Now, that positive is turned into a negative, with Fortin removed under a cloud.

And third, and perhaps it’s not politically correct to say this, but if Fortin is under investigation for something like a harassment scandal, it makes you wonder why he would be removed now.

Wouldn’t it make more sense to keep him in place – especially if he’s actually good at the job – rather than remove him and replace him with someone worse?

A behind the scenes scandal likely shouldn’t take precedence over Canada’s vaccine logistics, and considering all the other scandals the government hides, why not deal with this one at a later time?

Unless of course it’s something so bad he needs to be removed now, which will be another stain on the CAF.

Now, while it’s easy to blame politicians and top military brass for this, the Canadian People must take responsibility as well.

For far too long, Canadians have seemed to discount the need to build a strong national defence.

The CAF is an afterthought for many, with both Conservative and Liberal governments keeping CAF funding low, failing to fix the procurement system, and leaving Canada virtually undefended, all without Canadians complaining or pushing back.

So, if we want to resurrect the integrity, reputation, and strength of the CAF, Canadians will need to make that a priority in our own minds, and demand it from those we elect.