It’s kind of like a happy ending in a Dickens novel: some tenants got behind on their rent; the landlord made threats; but then landlord relented, forgave the debt and the tenants went on their merry way.

Except this story has a twist. The landlord was a child-welfare agency and the tenant was a large government organization facing multiple financial investigations.

The Winnipeg Free Press recently reported Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak (MKO) — an organization representing 30 Manitoba First Nations — owed $129,000 in unpaid rent to the Awasis child and family services agency in Thompson. Awasis agreed to forgive the debt. MKO found new offices.

Think about that for a moment. The $129,000 wasn’t owed to some slum landlord smoking cigars while counting stacks of cash. It was owed to an agency that was no doubt supposed to use the money to care for children. And these kids aren’t the progeny of privilege who are coddled by omnipresent helicopter parents, but rather children from some of the poorest communities in the province.

The story actually gets worse.

In 2013, MKO commissioned accounting firm Lazer Grant to investigate internal financial issues. The reports raised significant concerns about contracts MKO awarded. It also concluded that "electronic equipment [cellphones and laptops] had been deliberately tampered with."

Then the federal government informed MKO in 2014 it would be investigating allegations of funding failing to go towards its intended purpose.

The Free Press cites sources saying nearly two-thirds of former grand chief David Harper’s $450,000 in expenses claimed since 2010 are raising eyebrows. About $77,000 of Harper’s travel claims were filed for trips that don’t line up with cellphone records, according to the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network.

New MKO Grand Chief Sheila North Wilson says she wants to be transparent. There’s no reason to doubt she’s sincerely trying to lift the thick cloud of suspicion she inherited. But even now, the truth is struggling to find the light. While North Wilson has seen a draft of Ottawa’s audit, MKO member God’s Lake First Nation Chief Gilbert Andrews says he’s still "in the dark."

And despite North Wilson’s best intentions, it’s not clear that darkness will be broken. When the Free Press asked North Wilson if she would release the audits or attempt to recover misspent cash, she said she would consult with other chiefs.

Consult? About what? How can there be a question as to whether this information should come out?

Either the allegations are false and the accused deserve to have their names cleared or the allegations are true and those responsible need to be held accountable.

However, proactive accountability would be vastly superior to assigning blame after the fact.

The First Nations Financial Transparency Act requires bands to publish salaries and expenses for chiefs and councils, as well as the community’s basic financial documents. It shows some chiefs are paid more than the prime minister and others serve their communities for little or no pay. The legislation gives grassroots First Nations the information they need to hold leaders accountable. Unfortunately, Indigenous and Northern Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett is no longer enforcing the legislation.

Rather than relegating the First Nations Financial Transparency Act to irrelevance, the legislation needs to be strengthened. Right now, it only provides transparency for individual bands. It doesn’t apply to umbrella groups such as MKO or even the Assembly of First Nations. That needs to change. All Canadians, including the First Nations, deserve to know what their leaders are doing with their money.

Audits are cold comfort when money meant to help children goes missing. We need to proactively protect those kids and their funding. The best way to provide that protection is through transparency.