Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government is attempting to prevent Treasury Board President Anita Anand from being summoned by committee to answer for suspicious ArriveCan contracting. MPs passed a motion Thursday to summon Anand for questioning over the failed $59.5 million ArriveCan program, Blacklock’s Reporter reported. The minister has been subpoenaed to testify within 21 days. Liberal MPs tried and failed to block the motion asking Anand to testify. “Why are we doing this?” asked MP Iqra Khalid. “We have spent, what, 6,000 hours on this so far? Well let’s talk about not finding anything for 6,000 hours. What is one or two more hours of the treasury board president going to do?”“The Conservatives have really gone down this massive fishing expedition,” said Khalid. “Unfortunately they haven’t caught any fish so far.”“We caught one that’s about $60 million.” replied Conservative MP Michael Barrett.As Minister of Public Works, Liberal MP Anand was in charge of contracts pertaining to the ten-times over-budget ArriveCan app, a border surveillance program the Trudeau Liberals enforced during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout the current ongoing investigation into the app’s development, there have been allegations of bribery, fraud and overriding bidding protocols. “The process was rigged,” Conservative MP Garnett Genuis told the Commons Public Accounts Committee. “People who had been pre-destined by the government to get a contract sat down with government officials to determine the terms.”“If the Liberals’ best defence of what happened in the Arrive-scam scandal is to say ministers don’t have anything to do with what happens inside of government, I would submit that is also a problem,” said Genuis.“Canadians expect better,” said Genuis. “Canadians expect ministers to take responsibility for things that happen.”The motion came after Deputy Public Works Minister Arianne Reza testified Thursday “it would just be impossible” for any minister to watch over contracting. “Often when you have to run a department the minister has to be able to delegate authority to the deputy minister and the executives and employees below,” said Reza.Chair of the Public Accounts Committee Conservative MP John Williamson said Reza’s testimony opened the door to questioning Anand. “The deputy minister has come in today and frankly made (Anand) sound like she is a passenger, not steering the ship,” said Williamson. “That is why I think the opposition is raising this. It is valid.”Liberal MP Brenda Shanahan said MPs should not be held to account for everything that went on in federal departments and agencies.“We are politicians,” said Shanahan. “We have a role. We represent our constituency. But we are not there to run the machinery of government. That, rightfully so, is separate from the political arm.”“There you have it,” said Shanahan. “We were in an emergency situation and there were bad actors that took advantage of that, however they did it, cozy contracting arrangements or fraudulent representation, whatever it was.”Conservative MP Stephanie Kusie pointed out a further discrepancy in Anand’s conduct. While Anand was minister of public works in 2021, LifeLabs received a $66,307,424 COVID-19 testing contract. Anand’s husband, John Knowlton, was director of LifeLabs at the same time. “You may remember LifeLabs was granted millions of dollars for COVID-19 testing,” said Kusie. “Is it not accurate that the president of the treasury board, the individual who oversees the public service, who is supposed to be a leader, should set the standard?”Since 2018, along with four other appointed MPs, Anand has been appointed to oversee the Department of Public Works responsible for billions spent in federal contracting. Yet, Anand denied on February 28 that she knew of any mishandling of the ArriveCan contracts, despite a reporter protesting, “You were the minister.” “The issues rested with officials and did not come to me,” replied Anand. “I too am looking to see what measures can be taken.”Anand told reporters in July she is extremely well-qualified for the position.“I am very well placed,” Anand said. “I have experience and background in the capital markets and in corporate governance. I was a professor for 25 years in these topics.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government is attempting to prevent Treasury Board President Anita Anand from being summoned by committee to answer for suspicious ArriveCan contracting. MPs passed a motion Thursday to summon Anand for questioning over the failed $59.5 million ArriveCan program, Blacklock’s Reporter reported. The minister has been subpoenaed to testify within 21 days. Liberal MPs tried and failed to block the motion asking Anand to testify. “Why are we doing this?” asked MP Iqra Khalid. “We have spent, what, 6,000 hours on this so far? Well let’s talk about not finding anything for 6,000 hours. What is one or two more hours of the treasury board president going to do?”“The Conservatives have really gone down this massive fishing expedition,” said Khalid. “Unfortunately they haven’t caught any fish so far.”“We caught one that’s about $60 million.” replied Conservative MP Michael Barrett.As Minister of Public Works, Liberal MP Anand was in charge of contracts pertaining to the ten-times over-budget ArriveCan app, a border surveillance program the Trudeau Liberals enforced during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout the current ongoing investigation into the app’s development, there have been allegations of bribery, fraud and overriding bidding protocols. “The process was rigged,” Conservative MP Garnett Genuis told the Commons Public Accounts Committee. “People who had been pre-destined by the government to get a contract sat down with government officials to determine the terms.”“If the Liberals’ best defence of what happened in the Arrive-scam scandal is to say ministers don’t have anything to do with what happens inside of government, I would submit that is also a problem,” said Genuis.“Canadians expect better,” said Genuis. “Canadians expect ministers to take responsibility for things that happen.”The motion came after Deputy Public Works Minister Arianne Reza testified Thursday “it would just be impossible” for any minister to watch over contracting. “Often when you have to run a department the minister has to be able to delegate authority to the deputy minister and the executives and employees below,” said Reza.Chair of the Public Accounts Committee Conservative MP John Williamson said Reza’s testimony opened the door to questioning Anand. “The deputy minister has come in today and frankly made (Anand) sound like she is a passenger, not steering the ship,” said Williamson. “That is why I think the opposition is raising this. It is valid.”Liberal MP Brenda Shanahan said MPs should not be held to account for everything that went on in federal departments and agencies.“We are politicians,” said Shanahan. “We have a role. We represent our constituency. But we are not there to run the machinery of government. That, rightfully so, is separate from the political arm.”“There you have it,” said Shanahan. “We were in an emergency situation and there were bad actors that took advantage of that, however they did it, cozy contracting arrangements or fraudulent representation, whatever it was.”Conservative MP Stephanie Kusie pointed out a further discrepancy in Anand’s conduct. While Anand was minister of public works in 2021, LifeLabs received a $66,307,424 COVID-19 testing contract. Anand’s husband, John Knowlton, was director of LifeLabs at the same time. “You may remember LifeLabs was granted millions of dollars for COVID-19 testing,” said Kusie. “Is it not accurate that the president of the treasury board, the individual who oversees the public service, who is supposed to be a leader, should set the standard?”Since 2018, along with four other appointed MPs, Anand has been appointed to oversee the Department of Public Works responsible for billions spent in federal contracting. Yet, Anand denied on February 28 that she knew of any mishandling of the ArriveCan contracts, despite a reporter protesting, “You were the minister.” “The issues rested with officials and did not come to me,” replied Anand. “I too am looking to see what measures can be taken.”Anand told reporters in July she is extremely well-qualified for the position.“I am very well placed,” Anand said. “I have experience and background in the capital markets and in corporate governance. I was a professor for 25 years in these topics.”
