ECHOES OF RAID MAY REACH ELECTION

I don't know if anyone has done anything wrong, but I do know that the
police raid on the legislature is terrible for the Liberal government.

It's never a good thing when the police show up with a search warrant and
cart a bunch of your stuff away, or when you suddenly start dumping your
most trusted staffers like they had a bad disease.

It's a bad thing when police raid a lobbyist's office, especially involved
in some key provincial issues.

And it's a very bad thing - even if it's inevitable - when enough facts
come out to allow a huge range of speculation, but not enough to actually
provide answers.

So no matter how diligently we all remember people are innocent until
proven guilty, that no politicians are suspected and that the police
investigation requires secrecy, we worry.

Here's what we know.

Victoria Police and the RCMP drug squad started looking into drug activity
on southern Vancouver Island in in 2001.

The deals involved marijuana and cocaine and U.S. connections. The
investigation also looked at possible police corruption. (This month one
Victoria officer was removed from duty, suspended with pay).

That investigation led to a broader probe of money laundering and other
commercial crime.

And that in turn led to a bunch of searches Sunday - the offices of two key
Liberal staffers, and the home of one; a lobby firm's office; an accounting
firm's office and others.

No politicians are involved in the investigation, police say. But that
doesn't mean they don't have some big problems.

The two staffers whose offices were stripped by police were political
appointees, hired by the premier's office and approved by cabinet.

The job title is ministerial assistant, and it pays about $60,000.

Dave Basi worked for Finance Minister Gary Collins and Bob Virk for
Transportation Minister Judith Reid.

It can be an important job, especially when the minister and aide function
well.

Who gets in the door to see the minister, what calls get returned, what
policy issues get pushed to the top of the pile - an effective ministerial
assistant has a lot of influence.

I'd rate Basi as an effective assistant, and a very influential one. He
worked with Collins on legislative issues, including which bills would be
introduced and when.

He's a political animal - and quite a bright one - who has also carved out
a big role in federal Liberal politics as a Paul Martin backer. He was a
trusted part of the small group dealing with the most sensitive,
significant issues in government.

And now the Liberals have fired him.

Basi says he has done nothing wrong, and expects to be exonerated and back
in public life.

I hope so.

I know less about Virk, and his role in Reid's office. It's still a
sensitive, significant gig.

So now Gordon Campbell has to explain why he hired a guy whose office was
searched by police.

("You can't know what everybody is doing in every area of their life every
day," Solicitor General Rich Coleman offered this week).

And he has to come up with a convincing demonstration that nothing that has
happened has compromised the public's interest, while doing that without
providing information that would compromise the police investigation.

It gets worse for the Liberals. The investigation is likely to take months
- - the seized documents are still under seal, awaiting a judicial review to
make sure that cabinet privilege isn't violated.

So figure that this will hang around until much closer to the next election
than the Liberals would like.

So what should you think?

You should be worried. It's fine to wait for the investigation to be
complete, and it's entirely possible there will be no government connection.

But now you need some answers, and the sooner the better.

Footnote: The lobby firm that was searched was Pilothouse Public Affairs Group.

Its principals include former Vancouver Province columnist Brian Kieran and
Erik Bornman, a federal Liberal and former aide to Paul Martin.

The firm has lobbied the B.C. government - and Reid and Collins - on behalf
of clients, including Omnitrax, one of the companies interested in buying
BC Rail.