PUBLICATION:
Toronto Star
DATE:
2004.05.11
SECTION:
News
PAGE: A08
SOURCE:
Toronto Star; Canadian Press
BYLINE:
Tonda MacCharles
DATELINE:
OTTAWA
ILLUSTRATION:
Auditor-General Sheila Fraser reported on firearms programin 2002. Anne
McLellan says fraud charges not tied to gun registry.
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Mystery
contract subject of charges
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The
federal firearms office said yesterday it had "no knowledge and no
records" of a mystery $150,000 "firearms" communications contract
that is the subject of fraud charges against sponsorship program head Chuck
Guite and Montreal ad executive Jean Brault.
It
is the second suspicious sponsorship contract to be tied to the controversial
gun control program. Another $330,000 advertising contract - previously
criticized by the federal auditor-general - is also the subject of fraud charges
laid yesterday.
"We,
at the firearms program, have no knowledge of this contract or any record that
it even originated from the firearms program. So we at this point know nothing
about it," said Thomas Vares, a spokesman for the Canadian Firearms Centre.
No
one in the federal government could, or would, provide details yesterday on the
contract, except to say it is listed on the government's Web site index of
sponsorship contracts for 1997-1998 simply as a $150,000 "firearms"
contract.
A
2002 public works report concluded "no report or post-mortem" was ever
found in the government's files in connection with the $150,000 contract,
reports.
"It
has nothing to do with the operation of the gun control program," Public
Safety Minister Anne McLellan, who is politically responsible for gun control,
told reporters yesterday.
"This
has nothing to do as far as I know with the implementation and running of the
gun control program, either licensing or registration."
The
RCMP, in announcing six counts of fraud and conspiracy to commit fraud against
Guite and Brault, allege the two men "defrauded the federal government for
$150,000 within the ambit of a contract with respect to the surveillance of
interest groups and with respect to the registration of firearms."
The
Mounties have also charged the pair in connection with another $330,000 firearms
advertising contract, which the police called bogus and which was criticized by
Auditor-General Sheila Fraser.
The
other charges yesterday relate to three contracts awarded to Brault's firm,
Groupaction Marketing, from 1996 to 1999.
Fraser's
office reported on audits of the firearms program in December, 2002,
questionable Groupaction contracts in May, 2002, and on the whole sponsorship
and advertising program this past February. In her latest report, Fraser said
that in December, 1996, the branch that Guite then ran - the advertising and
public opinion research sector (APORS) - signed a $330,000 contract with
Groupaction to develop a communications strategy related to the new firearms
legislation.
Fraser
said Guite's office "received invoices for the full amount of the contract
and approved the payments. However, there was no evidence that APORS received
anything for the money it paid to Groupaction under this contract."
Fraser
also criticized advertising work the department was clearly aware of, saying
justice officials failed to competitively tender subcontracted work.
She
cited a $1.9 million contract managed by justice department officials in 2000
that went to Groupaction.
"Groupaction
turned around and subcontracted work valued at $355,999 to Alleluia Design
without submitting evidence that it had obtained three bids," said Fraser.
"Of
particular concern is that Groupaction was affiliated with Alleluia. Groupaction
and Alleluia Design invoices showed the same phone number and the same
departmental reference number, yet the department did not question the
companies' relationship and approved the payment of a 17.65 per cent
commission."