Friday, March 3, 2000
David Stonehouse, with files from Rick Mofina
The Ottawa Citizen
Rene Fugere, shown at a 1997 campaign event in Shawinigan, became an Earth
Canada executive early last year, the company says. His alleged lobbying
activities are under RCMP investigation.
· A money-losing Montreal firm with a corporate board that includes two allies of Prime Minister Jean Chretien -- one of them currently under investigation by the RCMP -- has been promised $10 million in federal cash, the Official Opposition charges. "Why is it that every time we turn over a rock, one of the prime minister's cronies crawls out from underneath it?" Reform Leader Preston Manning asked in the House of Commons yesterday.
· According to the Reform party, EARTH Canada Corporation secured a $10-million line of credit from Export Development Corporation after bringing aboard Shawinigan lawyer Gilles Champagne as chairman and chief executive officer and naming Grand Mere businessman Rene Fugere as corporate secretary. Newspaper reports have linked both men to Mr. Chretien.
FULL STORY :-
Friday, March 3, 2000
David Stonehouse, with files from Rick Mofina
The Ottawa Citizen
Rene Fugere, shown at a 1997 campaign event in Shawinigan, became an Earth
Canada executive early last year, the company says. His alleged lobbying
activities are under RCMP investigation.
A money-losing Montreal firm with a corporate board that includes two allies of
Prime Minister Jean Chretien -- one of them currently under investigation by
the RCMP -- has been promised $10 million in federal cash, the Official
Opposition charges.
"Why is it that every time we turn over a rock, one of the prime minister's cronies crawls out from underneath it?" Reform Leader Preston Manning asked in the House of Commons yesterday.
Reform charged that EARTH Canada Corporation secured a $10-million line of credit from Export Development Corporation after bringing aboard Shawinigan lawyer Gilles Champagne as chairman and chief executive officer and naming Grand Mere businessman Rene Fugere as corporate secretary.
Newspaper reports have linked both men to Mr. Chretien: Mr. Champagne as a long-time supporter who has organized fundraising events in the prime minister's riding and Mr. Fugere as a key Liberal in the riding who has worked as an unpaid aide to Mr. Chretien.
Mr. Fugere is currently under investigation by the Mounties amid allegations he lobbied federal officials for grants for firms in Mr. Chretien's riding but did not register as a lobbyist.
According to Reform, both men became corporate executives with the firm early last year.
"How is it that the very mention of their names turns on the taps?" Reform House Leader Deborah Grey asked in the House.
"Miraculously, Fugere and Champagne came on the board and they were given a $10-million line of credit."
Deputy Prime Minister Herb Gray dismissed her charge as a baseless accusation.
"The honourable member has not demonstrated in any way, shape or form ... a connection between these individuals and the decision on the grant," he said.
Reached last night, EARTH Canada president Nick Di Thomaso declined to respond to Reform's charges, but confirmed that Mr. Champagne is chairman of the firm. He said he has never heard of Mr. Fugere.
"Since I never met him, I would be surprised he is even on our board. We had a board meeting Monday; he was certainly not there. I don't want to mislead you. He may have been a director before," Mr. Di Thomaso said.
However, a National Post report last summer quoted chief operating officer Edward Akkawi as saying that Mr. Fugere was brought onto the board as a director because of his expertise in government relations.
Reform painted the company, which develops products to clean up oil spills, as a perennial money-loser. According to figures released by the party, the company reported net losses of nearly $2 million between 1995 and 1998 and another $1.9-million in 1999.
In the face of continual questions about the money going to the company, Liberals complained that Reform had not given them advance warning the issue would be raised in Question Period so they could better prepare themselves.
"This is ridiculous," International Trade Minister Pierre Pettigrew said after Reform MP Monte Solberg pressed him for answers on the file. "When he really wants an answer, instead of making cheap political shots as the Opposition likes to do, he can serve notice on a particular file so we can look into it."
Later, Mr. Pettigrew told reporters that the firm is not a client of the federal export agency. Export Development Corporation spokesman Rod Giles said the agency extended a $10-million line of credit to Brazilian petroleum giant Petrobras.
The Montreal firm counts Petrobras as a major customer of its products for cleaning up oil spills. EARTH Canada secured an agreement with the export agency allowing Petrobras to use the line of credit to cover those purchases.
Mr. Di Thomaso said the Brazilian company has already paid off its last obligations to EARTH Canada.
"There is no jeopardy to the government. I'm not trying to protect the Liberal government, believe me. I have no reason to," said Mr. Di Thomaso, who ran for the Conservatives in the last federal election.
Outside the Commons, Tory MP Peter MacKay questioned why the government would get involved with Mr. Fugere and Mr. Champagne.
"Whether the money went there or not, why is the government dealing with these two persons knowing that there's a cloud of suspicion ... hanging over both of them?"
Reform MP Diane Ablonczy told reporters there is a perception of political interference.
"The suggestion is they got the line of credit solely because of the intervention of these people connected to the prime minister," she said.
The Chretien government has been under attack for weeks for its handling of federal grants and contributions. Political opponents have accused the Liberals of porkbarrelling and questioned the government over its handling of nearly $1 billion in grants and contributions handed out by the Human Resources department.
The Liberals have dismissed what has been dubbed the Shovelgate scandal, saying the federal money is being used to create jobs and improve the lives of disadvantaged Canadians.