Manitoba's Opposition says the government was "sneaky and underhanded" when it suggested to its Crown corporations that they should donate to the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.

The province's auto insurer, the publicly owned utility and the agencies in charge of alcohol and lotteries have each planned to donate about $1 million for the construction of the museum.

Premier Gary Doer said Monday he "encouraged" various Crown boards to donate to the museum. The province has already pledged $40 million to the museum.

'Generally speaking, when the boss encourages you to do something, you don't take it as an optional thing.'—Hugh McFadyen

"Crown corporations make investments in our community in all the time," said Doer.

"If you go to a Bomber game, you'll see ads and other promotions [from Crown agencies] for the support of the football club."

But Tory Leader Hugh McFadyen sees it differently. He said the New Democrats basically directed the Crown agencies to put money into the project.

"There's no difference between encouraging and directing when it comes to the premier and a Crown corporation," McFadyen said. "Generally speaking, when the boss encourages you to do something, you don't take it as an optional thing."

No impact on Autopac customers: MPI

Brian Smiley, a spokesman for Manitoba Public Insurance, said he's "not sure" if they were approached by Doer about funding for the museum, but confirmed the board has approved $500,000 over two years for the facility.

The money for that donation comes out of a fund for large-fleet trucks, which unlike car insurance, can be bought from other companies, said Smiley.

"This will have zero impact on our Autopac customers," he said.

Antoine Predock, a New Mexico-based architect, won an international competition with this design of the proposed museum in 2005. (Robert Reck Photography)

The chairwoman for the Manitoba Liquor Control Commission said the board decided to make the donation after their president saw a presentation from Gail Asper, who is spearheading the museum on behalf of her late father, Izzy Asper, founder of CanWest Global Communications Corp.

"We felt this was a project well worth investing in. It's such an international project," said Carmen Neufeld.

"As a good corporate citizen, we wanted to be part of that."

The national museum, Canada's first outside the Ottawa area, expects about 250,000 visitors a year, which will be good for business, Neufeld said.

"That translates into more hotel rooms, that translates into more people going into restaurants and bars and purchasing our products," she said.

Critics, however, question the independence behind the Crown's decisions to donate.

"The notion of the premier "suggesting" to the Crowns is laughable, considering he appoints the boards that make these decisions," said Adrienne Batra, Manitoba director of the Canadian Taxpayers' Federation.

Firefighters to offer $1 each per year

Meanwhile, firefighters in Manitoba have offered their own financial support to the museum's fundraising efforts, and hope the move inspires other unionized workers to follow.

Professional firefighters in Winnipeg, Brandon, Portage, Thompson and Pinawa committed Tuesday for every firefighter to donate one dollar a year over the next five years.

Alex Forrest, president of the United Firefighters of Winnipeg, expects firefighters in the five communities will raise about $1,000 a year.

While the amount of money is small compared to the museum's budget, Forrest hopes it will motivate thousands of other unionized workers in the province to make a similar contribution.

"This is probably one of the biggest endeavours that this city has done in over a decade. And we just felt it was important, and our members felt it was important that we were going to be part of this great endeavour," Forrest said.

The museum is expected to cost $265 million to build, and $22 million a year to operate. Organizers hope to have it open sometime in 2010.

To date, backers have raised about $220 million, according to the museum's website.

The federal government has promised to pay $100 million for construction, as well as operating costs.