Friday, August 19, 2022

Can a Prime Minister not party in their own time these days?

Sanna Marin, who became Prime Minister of Finland in 2019, and who is still only 36 years old, has been pilloried for having the audacity (and the youthfulness) to party hard in her spare time.

The young, comely politician was videoed partying, dancing and singing "boisterously" and "wildly" in a private house, and has had the embarrassment of having the videos publicly shared. Opposition politicians and others are unabashedly making hay from it. Here is one example: "Finland is suffering from record high electricity prices, lack of health care and elderly care professionals, and this is how our leader is spending her time!"

She is understandably incensed that videos of her private personal time are being publicly disseminated by those wishing to discredit her politically. She says that no illicit drugs were involved (as opposition politicians are claiming), just alcohol.

It seems ridiculous that she is being censured in this way by some buttoned-down puritans looking for a political angle. What a Prime Minister, or any other citizen, does in his or her own time in a private place should not become political fodder. Just because she is young and likes to dance and enjoys the odd drink to relieve the stress of her position does not mean she cannot do her job properly. 

If these activities start to interfere with her ability to perform her job, that is a different matter entirely. But in the meantime, power to her, I say.

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