Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Sunday, November 30, 2014

Cabinet minister's riding may have received $25K from SNC-Lavalin execs

SNC-Lavalin executives involved in an illegal political slush fund for Quebec provincial parties may have conducted the same practice at the federal level, CTV News has learned.

Elections Canada records reveal that 10 top SNC-Lavalin managers and their wives wrote personal cheques in 2009 to two federal Conservative riding associations that showed little chance of winning.

A total of $25,000 was funnelled to the ridings of Laurier-Sainte-Marie and Portneuf-Jacques-Cartier.

Approximately $30,000 was then transferred out to Megantic-L’Erable, the riding of then-public works minister Christian Paradis, CTV’s Ottawa Bureau Chief Robert Fife reported Friday night.

Paradis, now minister of international development, was Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s Quebec lieutenant in charge of political patronage at the time.

Under the Canada Elections Act, corporations are prohibited from making political donations.

NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice suggested the records reveal a “scheme.”

“I think it’s a clear-cut case of breaking the rules,” Boulerice said.

In a statement on Friday, the Conservative Party said: “Neither Minister Paradis nor his riding association had any reason to believe these donations were anything other than the lawful, individual donations they were. It appears SNC deliberately concealed the alleged wrongdoing from the targets of their actions, including from Minister Paradis.”

Elections Canada records also show SNC-Lavalin managers also made donations worth $14,000 to the federal Liberal riding of Chambly Broduas.

CTV News asked SNC-Lavalin if the company had reimbursed the executives for their federal donations. SNC did not respond by deadline.

A top SNC-Lavalin executive has previously admitted to Quebec’s corruption inquiry, the Charbonneau Commission, that the company illegally donated more than $1 million to Quebec provincial parties.

Managers made personal donations and were reimbursed with salary bonuses.

The NDP told CTV News it will ask the Elections Canada commissioner to investigate whether federal election laws were broken.

Original Article
Source: ctvnews.ca/
Author: CTVNews.ca Staff

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