Why are five MLAs and two bureaucrats, at a cost of $86,000, going to Copenhagen next month, knowing full well that NWT taxpayers will surely disapprove?

Dalton McGuinty, premier of the largest province in Canada, passed on an invite from federal Environment Minister Jim Prentice; he is satisfied sending Ontario Environment Minister John Gerretsen in his stead.

But not only has our premier deemed his presence necessary, so has our territorial Environment Minister Michael Miltenberger, and the two MLA members of the GNWT climate change committee. Yes, renowned world traveller David Krutko, MLA for the Mackenzie Delta, and Bob Bromley, Weledeh MLA and granddaddy of Ecology North, will be tagging along. And hey, why not bring third-string quarterback Glen Abernethy, MLA for Great Slave, to boot?

In addition, there's the two GNWT staff members besides Ray Case, the territorial government's director of environment, whose trip is already being covered by the federal government, which brings the NWT's presence at the United Nations climate change conference in Copenhagen to a total of eight.

Perhaps it's not unreasonable to ensure the NWT has at least some representation at the conference, though it's expected some 190 countries will be sending delegates at the federal level, and that's not including regional representatives from each state, province, and hobbit shire of the realm, never mind the legion of wankers we can expect from the UN and all those NGOs. Copenhagen will be one crowded place come Dec. 7.

But as Abernethy has already told us, our MLAs aren't going there to make a case for greenhouse gas reductions, or to educate the rest of the world on dwindling caribou numbers, or to even pass around copies of Stephen Kakfwi's latest CD, they're there to "observe."

That doesn't seem to be a very good reason to blow nearly six figures to drop eight people into the land of blue cheese and mermaids, especially considering the NWT's population couldn't even fill Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium.

Sahtu MLA Norman Yakeleya, on the other hand, views the conference as a grand opportunity for the GNWT to embark on some sort of "promotional event" to "showcase that we mean serious business."

About what I have no idea but he reckons a good way for the government to get some attention is to hold a cabinet meeting out on the Arctic Ocean ahead of the conference. Personally, I have hard time picturing Sandy Lee coping in her red skirt suit under the dark, endless polar night while the sea ice cracks and groans beneath her feet.

But I digress, back to the original question. Why are these guys loading the bases on a trip where it seems assured they won't have much official business to do and have minimal impact overall?

To be sure, MLAs, particularly those on cabinet, need to travel outside the territory time to time to do their jobs effectively, especially when it comes to interacting with other provinces and territories. They should also be well-compensated to ensure we have quality people seeking the job. And why not throw in some nice perks every once and a while too, but criss-crossing the Atlantic Ocean every few months is a bit much.

They know they can get away with it because the GNWT, as a political entity, is a sleight of hand that promises accountability but vaporizes into thin air every four years at "election" time.

I ask you as a voter, if you don't like what this government is doing, what are you going to do about it in October 2011? What kind of signal are you going to send when you enter the voting booth? What signal can you send?

You can't punish the premier or anybody else on cabinet who doles out these excessive goodies if your riding is say, Yellowknife Centre.

That's consensus government, and in the legislative assembly the consensus is to hand out airline tickets like they were raffle prizes.

- Mike W. Bryant is assignment editor for Yellowknifer. Contact him at 766-8236 or by e-mail at minder@nnsl.com