Her Legacy: The "business only" $200 golf shoes?
The problem with getting caught with your hand in the taxpayer cookie jar is it creates a legacy. Who can forget Bev Oda and her $16 glass of orange juice? Or what about David Dingwall former Cabinet Minister in the Chretien government whose 3/4 million dollars worth of 2004 public expenses included $1.29 for a package of gum? Do you figure he was bright enough to walk while chewing it? He later resigned but before doing so the phrase "I was Dingwalled!" had been born.
Fast forward to Red River College President Stephanie Forsyth years from now. Will she be remembered best for those $200 "business only" golf shoes and will that give rise to the expression, "Taxpayers were Forsythed?"
Sincerely,
Clare L. Pieuk
Kelly McParland: When caught with dodgy expenses, just blame it on someone else and promise to repay
Stephanie Forsyth, the president of Manitoba’s Red River College, says she’ll repay the expenses she claimed for her golf shoes, duffel bags, car washes and winter tires for her BMW, and the GPS system that helped her get around town.
That’s nice. More good news: Sen. Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu has repaid the $907 he claimed for housing allowance on his “primary home” in Sherbrooke, Quebec, even though he’s actually been living with his girlfriend in Ottawa. And Peter Penashue, the federal intergovernmental affairs minister, has resigned his seat in the Commons and repaid $30,000 in “ineligible contributions” he accepted during the 2011 election campaign.
Not to be outdone, B.C. Premier Christy Clark says her Liberal party will repay $70,000 spent on its ill-fated “ethnic outreach” strategy, after an investigation found, (according to the CBC) “numerous other breaches of the government code of conduct by a number of political staffers and other government employees, including several deemed to be serious breaches.”
Pamela Wallin, a Conservative senator, has repaid a “substantial” amount of the $321,037 she claimed in “other travel” expenses since 2010 — 70% of which were reportedly for flights to Toronto, where she owns a home (though she was appointed as a senator for Saskatchewan). Her fellow senator, Mike Duffy, is evidently still working on his promise to repay up to $90,000 in housing claims for the cottage in PEI he claimed was his main residence — unless he meant the condo in PEI that is his other main residence — rather than the house on the golf course in Ottawa where he actually lives.
All this repaying going on, and — unless I’ve missed it — not a single admission of untoward behaviour.
Ms. Forsyth issued a statement explaining that all the items she claimed were used in service to her job as college president.
“[The golf shoes],” she said, “were and are only used for college business. However, I understand some people may find the expense questionable.”
She added that she bought the $134 duffel bag to replace a damaged bag used to carry college papers. And the driver’s licence — well, that was just an accident.
Similarly, Sen. Boisvenu said he was writing a cheque for $907 even though he didn’t have to, because he felt bad about it.
“Everything I did was within the rules. While I was transitioning to new accommodations in summer 2012, I stayed for a short period of time with an individual with which I had a relationship. While this was within the rules, I feel uncomfortable with the claim and have fully repaid $907,” he said.
The “individual” he was bunking with happened to be his girlfriend, who was also his executive assistant, and some of the confusion related to the fact he was on the outs with his wife (for fairly obvious reasons). Except, it appears the relationship with the girlfriend may also have soured. All of which, of course, is secondary to the fact that none of it was his fault.
Penashue also wants Canadians to know he’s completely innocent. The problems arose “due to mistakes that were made by an inexperienced volunteer in filing the Elections Canada return from the last campaign.” And Premier Clark has already accepted the resignation of her friend and deputy chief of staff over the ethnic strategy disaster, pointing out, by the by, that “consistent with circumstances of resignations, no severance payment applies.”
Sen. Duffy, of course, has been the victim of a monstrous campaign of disinformation by his former colleagues in the yellow press, mounted despite his determined efforts to do the right thing. After insisting for weeks that his conscience was clear (when he wasn’t fleeing reporters through the kitchen), Duffy conceded he “may have been mistaken” when he filled out the Senate forms identifying his primary residence. Not that it was his fault:
It’s a tough world, being a public-minded citizen. Fortunately there are underlings, aides, volunteers and confusing regulations to blame it on when you get caught.
Not to be outdone, B.C. Premier Christy Clark says her Liberal party will repay $70,000 spent on its ill-fated “ethnic outreach” strategy, after an investigation found, (according to the CBC) “numerous other breaches of the government code of conduct by a number of political staffers and other government employees, including several deemed to be serious breaches.”
Pamela Wallin, a Conservative senator, has repaid a “substantial” amount of the $321,037 she claimed in “other travel” expenses since 2010 — 70% of which were reportedly for flights to Toronto, where she owns a home (though she was appointed as a senator for Saskatchewan). Her fellow senator, Mike Duffy, is evidently still working on his promise to repay up to $90,000 in housing claims for the cottage in PEI he claimed was his main residence — unless he meant the condo in PEI that is his other main residence — rather than the house on the golf course in Ottawa where he actually lives.
All this repaying going on, and — unless I’ve missed it — not a single admission of untoward behaviour.
Ms. Forsyth issued a statement explaining that all the items she claimed were used in service to her job as college president.
“[The golf shoes],” she said, “were and are only used for college business. However, I understand some people may find the expense questionable.”
She added that she bought the $134 duffel bag to replace a damaged bag used to carry college papers. And the driver’s licence — well, that was just an accident.
Similarly, Sen. Boisvenu said he was writing a cheque for $907 even though he didn’t have to, because he felt bad about it.
“Everything I did was within the rules. While I was transitioning to new accommodations in summer 2012, I stayed for a short period of time with an individual with which I had a relationship. While this was within the rules, I feel uncomfortable with the claim and have fully repaid $907,” he said.
The “individual” he was bunking with happened to be his girlfriend, who was also his executive assistant, and some of the confusion related to the fact he was on the outs with his wife (for fairly obvious reasons). Except, it appears the relationship with the girlfriend may also have soured. All of which, of course, is secondary to the fact that none of it was his fault.
Penashue also wants Canadians to know he’s completely innocent. The problems arose “due to mistakes that were made by an inexperienced volunteer in filing the Elections Canada return from the last campaign.” And Premier Clark has already accepted the resignation of her friend and deputy chief of staff over the ethnic strategy disaster, pointing out, by the by, that “consistent with circumstances of resignations, no severance payment applies.”
Sen. Duffy, of course, has been the victim of a monstrous campaign of disinformation by his former colleagues in the yellow press, mounted despite his determined efforts to do the right thing. After insisting for weeks that his conscience was clear (when he wasn’t fleeing reporters through the kitchen), Duffy conceded he “may have been mistaken” when he filled out the Senate forms identifying his primary residence. Not that it was his fault:
“What we’ve got here is a case where the rules aren’t clear,” Duffy told CTV Atlantic.“I filled in a form that the Senate has, which I may have filled in incorrectly. And if I did that…anyway.”
Duffy said he will return the funds “even though I don’t believe I owe the money.”
Here’s the wording that confused the senator:
“Primary residence” is defined as “the residence identified by the senator as his/her main residence and is situated in the province or territory represented by the senator.”It’s amazing that all these people could get caught in the maw of the scurrilous press, even though each of them is wholly innocent and victim of a simple mistake anybody could have made No wonder none of them ever actually shows up in public to issue their explanations in person. They send out statements to the press. That makes it convenient for avoiding follow-up questions, as in: How could you possibly argue a cottage in PEI that’s snow-bound all winter is your main residence, when everyone knows you’ve been living in Ottawa for 3o years?
It’s a tough world, being a public-minded citizen. Fortunately there are underlings, aides, volunteers and confusing regulations to blame it on when you get caught.
posted by Clare L. Pieuk at 6:03 AM
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