NORTH BATTLEFORD - The Battlefords Trade and Education Centre (BTEC) board of directors has issued a statement on their about concerns they have had regarding the Saskatchewan Party's recent visit to their facility.
The Saskatchewan Party held a press conference at the site on Oct. 8 attended by candidates including Scott Moe and Jeremy Cockrill, when it released a commitment it is making if re-elected in this month's election.
On Oct. 24, BTEC's board of directors stated BTEC is non-partisan and does not support any political party. It said if it had the opportunity, it would have not allowed the Sask. Party to use it's venue to make an election-platform campaign announcement.
BTEC stated that the Oct. 8 event "was held without the knowledge or approval of the BTEC Board of Directors."
The board said that by BTEC "hosting an event for one political party, it appeared that BTEC supported that party."
The BTEC board says they regret that this event happened at the BTEC facility.
"BTEC's board and staff must remain non-partisan when representing BTEC," the board stated. "We are extremely regretful this event occurred at our facility."
"BTEC is very appreciative of the support we receive from the community," they added in their post. "The board hopes this unapproved event has not caused negative perception of the BTEC community."
When contacted by SaskToday, the Saskatchewan Party provided this statement on Oct. 25 in response to the BTEC board of directors' concerns.
"We were honoured to have been hosted by the executive director of BTEC to announce our platform commitment to make life more affordable for people with disabilities," they said.
"We are grateful for the work the executive director and staff do each and every day to support members of the community, and we were excited to meet the program participants and help profile the amazing work BTEC does."
