![[Democracy Watch Logo]](dw.gif) |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Groups silenced, former integrity officer ignored as whistleblower watchdog appointment is rammed through committee
Groups call on opposition
MPs and Conservative MPs with integrity to vote Join the Facebook
group to get the $500,000 back, and to
strengthen the federal whistleblower protection
system
OTTAWA– Today, FAIR, Canadians for
Accountability, Democracy Watch and the 30-member group
Government Ethics Coalition called on opposition parties
and Conservative MPs with integrity to vote against
Prime Minister Harper's appointment of Mario Dion as the
new Public Sector Integrity Commissioner. "There
are many reasons to be concerned that Mario Dion will
continue the extremely weak enforcement record of
disgraced former Integrity Commissioner Christiane
Ouimet, and so we call on all MPs with integrity to
vote against the appointment of Mr. Dion," said
David Hutton, FAIR's Executive Director, on behalf of
all the groups. "There are 10
questions about Dion's appointment that raise
serious concerns that have not been addressed." There is no dispute that the appointment of now-disgraced former Integrity Commissioner Christiane Ouimet was a serious mistake, leading to a spectacular 3-year meltdown of PSIC, the agency she headed. Regrettably, the appointment process
for her successor, Mario Dion, gives little assurance
that anything has been learned from this fiasco. The new Integrity Commissioner is,
like Ouimet, an insider whose entire career has been
within the bureaucracy – a point of great concern to
many. His
appointment is being rammed through Parliament with
little opportunity for dissent, debate or reflection. Highly-qualified
witnesses
have been excluded from the process and denied any
opportunity to testify, and the absurd decision to call
no other witnesses besides Dion was made behind closed
doors in a secret committee meeting. - 30 -
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: Tyler Sommers, Coordinator of Democracy Watch or Duff
Conacher, Board member of Democracy Watch and
Chairperson of the Government
Ethics Coalition David Hutton, Executive Director, FAIR (Federal
Accountability Initiative for Reform)
Ian Bron, Managing Director, Canadians
for Accountability
To see the December
2010 report on former disgraced Integrity Commissioner
Christiane Ouimet by Auditor General Sheila Fraser, click
here. To see the list of
needed reforms to the Public
Servants Disclosure Protection Act, click here. Democracy Watch's Open Government Campaign page and Government Ethics Campaign page
|
