IF THE CANADIAN MUSEUM FOR Human Rights is going to succeed as an international tourist draw and driver of dialogue on rights and freedoms, it could well be in spite of the executive and board rather than because of them.

That’s due to those in charge of the $351-million museum, which had its less than grand opening in September, continuing to play a never-ending game of musical chairs.

The latest to leave is Stuart Murray, the former provincial Progressive Conservative leader who took over as the museum’s president and CEO in 2009. His five-year contract with the museum will end Nov. 1 – and it won’t be renewed, according to board chair Eric Hughes. The decision clearly was not Murray’s; but it’s not surprising, considering the disappointing nature of the museum’s grand opening.

Last November, Murray announced the museum would be unveiled to the world on Sept. 20, 2014. But, when that day finally arrived, the festivities were underwhelming – to say the least.

Just four of the 11 galleries were open to the public. A number of the exhibits still need to be finished, and there was no shortage of workers walking around wearing construction helmets.

Murray, to his credit, was quick to fall on his sword and take the blame for the botched opening. The following week, he held a press conference to announce that the actual full opening would take place on Nov. 11. In the interim, the museum is offering a pair of tours, one that includes five galleries and another highlighting the building’s unique architecture.

“We had fully anticipated that we would be ready to offer a full experience [in September],” Murray told the press conference. “The reality is we’re not ready.”

Still, the fact that Murray and his team didn’t realize until a couple of days before the originally scheduled opening that the museum would need another six or seven weeks to be completed looked amateurish – again, to say the least.

There was no shortage of people who had booked flights to Winnipeg to see the museum – all of it – right after it opened, only to be disappointed once they arrived.

Murray is just the latest in a long line of high-ranking officials to step aside.

Two years ago, Dav Cvitkovic resigned as CEO of the Friends of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, the private-sector fundraising arm, less than a year after starting the job. In February 2011, chief operating officer Patrick O’Reilly stepped down after two years. A month later, chief knowledge officer Victoria Dickenson left to pursue a job in Ontario. That December, Arni Thorsteinson, chairman of the museum’s board and a longtime museum supporter, left his post, reportedly in a power struggle with Prime Minister Stephen Harper. From 2008 to 2012, 37 museum staff members were either fired or have left voluntarily.

The museum has also been dogged by questions of financial mismanagement. The initial building cost and its contents was pegged at $265 million in 2007. Four years later, that jumped to $310 million and then to $351 million. The many supporters of this unique project will be hoping its future will be smoother than its beginnings.

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