The NDP government's decision to funnel $9 million in gambling revenue through the First Nations Fund last year is a bit like plugging a slot machine - you stick your money in, it disappears, and you don't know where it goes. The only difference with the Fund is that there is no jackpot.

Last year, the Provincial Auditor set off alarm bells when it was revealed that the First Nations Fund was blocking efforts to examine their books. Nothing was done to remedy the situation, in spite of pressure on the government to have the agency open up. In fact, the NDP government continues to send millions of dollars to the Fund.

The First Nations Fund was established as a crown agency accountable to the Minister of Municipal Affairs. It is responsible for channeling gambling revenue into economic development, health care, justice issues, and other activities related to Indian Bands.

The trustees who run the Fund say that they are not required to open up to the Provincial Auditor, but only to provide their own audit to the government, which they have done.

Au contraire. The Saskatchewan Gaming Corporation Act says that the Provincial Auditor is empowered to look into all accounts and financial statements with regard to the Fund, just as he can look into other organizations that are handling taxpayer money.

So why the secrecy Is there something to hide There is no special reason to suspect the First Nations Fund or its own audit, but without full access to the financial material that formed the basis of that audit, the Provincial Auditor is blind in one eye. And to resist the Auditor's lawful requests only raises suspicions that the game is rigged.

I point out that the Provincial Auditor is directly responsible not to the government, but to the whole Legislature and the people of Saskatchewan. The resistance of the First Nations Fund to the office of the Provincial Auditor, and the apparent support of the government for this resistance, raises serious questions about the government's commitment to openness and accountability.

It is also a dangerous precedent that could embolden other government-related bodies that are "uncomfortable" with the Auditor's scrutiny.

Aside from mushrooms, the only thing that grows in the dark is trouble. The people of Saskatchewan know this only too well. The stink of corruption from the old Conservative government still hasn't lifted, and we know the damage that was caused by closed-door dealings with the Channel Lake scandal and the Guyana fiasco.

The First Nations Fund is probably hunky-dory, but taxpayers have a right to know how their money is being handled, and at this point will not settle for anything less than full access for the Provincial Auditor.

This is another example of the government, and its related crowns and agencies, being evasive and secretive about their dealings and finances. Maybe the government is afraid that if all of its tentacles are exposed in the light of day, taxpayers will want to lop some of them off.