gizmo2337 Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 3 minutes ago, Jimmy McGill said: not to make excuses, but its not exactly watergate But no doubt there are a lot of Liberal MLAs going back over their expense claims today things like this are only good if they actually create long-term change. If this doesn't lead to a new oversight system then its just theatre. "I was told just to process them, they were around filing taxi and mileage on the same day which is not quite possible,” Gibson said. “In terms of the claims I am concerned about, the value is very small but to me the amount doesn’t matter. It’s about doing the right thing.” True, but there wouldn't be a criminal investigation over petty cash either. I'm willing to bet we are talking 10-100's of millions of dollars. We only have part of the information so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JM_ Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 1 minute ago, debluvscanucks said: It wasn't even "riding" the gravy train...it was helping to set it up. I have so much more faith right now in the NDP and the Liberals, to me, are a conniving bunch. I feel there is so much deception that has come to be the norm in that party. I mean, all politics involves people who will take advantage of their role to serve a personal agenda to some degree. But this was blatant abuse of power that has created some huge messes...mostly to the average Joes who are struggling to make ends meet. Thats why I was really hoping the Liberals would have cleaned house on their leadership group and brought in an outsider like Dianne Watts. Wilkinson gives me the creeps, he's just an extension of the Clark years which needed a clean, real break. If this scandal brings down Wilkinson and renewal to the Liberals thats a good thing, as you do need to have a legitimate opposition to any party thats in power. I just hope this leads to some real change, I'm skeptical, but we'll see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JM_ Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 5 minutes ago, gizmo2337 said: True, but there wouldn't be a criminal investigation over petty cash either. I'm willing to bet we are talking 10-100's of millions of dollars. We only have part of the information so far. well so far we don't know what the RCMP are doing or have found. All we have is a very one-sided report of allegations produced by people with close ties to Plecas. Its going to be months likely before we know if there is anything criminal or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warhippy Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 45 minutes ago, debluvscanucks said: It wasn't even "riding" the gravy train...it was helping to set it up. I have so much more faith right now in the NDP and the Liberals, to me, are a conniving bunch. I feel there is so much deception that has come to be the norm in that party. I mean, all politics involve people who will take advantage of their role to serve a personal agenda to some degree. But this was blatant abuse of power that has created some huge messes...mostly to the average Joes who are struggling to make ends meet. I really like David Eby (know a bit about him from before he got into politics and was doing some great work out there) and John Horgan. For me, it's the majorities in BC that the Liberals had. I have NO doubt that some long term NDP MLA's stuck their hands in the cookie jar. But effectively being in power without challenge for just over 16 years meant that they effectively changed the rules, to do whatever they wanted. Barisoffs retirement handling is absolutely egregious and cannot be claimed to be a mistake at all, he was in power for almost 2 decades. This is all at the hands of the BC Liberals, they created the system, they chose the individuals, they changed the rules. There is little to no possible way the NDP can be blamed for this; although it won't stop people from seeking out other MLA's with other party affiliations to shine the light on to deflect the heat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warhippy Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 Well then, 2007....fancy that The bombshell report by Darryl Plecas is not the first time we have heard allegations of questionable spending at the B.C. Legislature. On Monday, he released a report outlining thousands of dollars in dubious expenses he says were charged to the legislature including limos, high end suits and accessories and luxury travel and accommodation. Sergeant-at-Arms Gary Lenz and Clerk of the House Craig James have not been charged with any crime and have denied all wrongdoing. They said they read the allegations against them for the first time in Plecas's report. None of this has been proven and there are no criminal charges. Two special prosecutors are looking at the allegations, along with the RCMP. In 2007, then Auditor-General John Doyle highlighted problems with an audit. He released a scathing report about the legislature's bookkeeping. He said at the time it was almost impossible to tell if there was money missing and was critical of the absence of an annual report. Five years later, he gave a failing grade to the provincial legislature's management of its then $63-million-a -year budget. It is now $80 million. Luxurious trips, lavish overspending alleged in bombshell report on expenses of top B.C. Legislature officials "The numbers did not make sense and were not supported by the evidence. So, this isn't some esoteric discussion about accounting rules. This is basic bread and butter. Not good," Doyle said. History repeats itself He said in the previous three years the Speaker's office had not produced financial statements, did not demand receipts for MLAs expense accounts and did not properly reconcile its bank balances. Doyle said at the time most of this could have been avoided if the Speaker's office had implemented his recommendations about accounting from the 2007 audit. House Speaker Darryl Plecas arrives at the Legislative Assembly Management Committee meeting in the Douglas Fir room at Legislature in Victoria, B.C., on Monday, Jan. 21, 2019. (Chad Hipolito/Canadian Press) The Speaker at the time was BC Liberal Bill Barisoff, who left office in 2013 after eight years on the job. The new Speaker, Linda Reid, was called on the carpet in 2014 for spending to refurbish her office. Reid racked up $120,000 in expenses and renovations, including a $48,00 upgrade to the Speaker's desk with a new touch screen computer. After Plecas' explosive report, B.C. politicians wonder what took so long She was also forced to repay a business class ticket to South Africa that she had expensed for her husband to accompany her to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference. Her successor was Steve Thomson who was in the job less than a year, as the Liberals failed to form government. 'Incredibly outrageous' Dermod Travis executive director of Integrity B.C. said it's disappointing to know this could have been stopped long ago. "It's incredibly outrageous at a number of levels ... it's the responsibility not just of elected officials but also senior staff to make certain that a tax dollar is well spent." Dermod Travis executive director of Integrity B.C. said it's disappointing that this could have been stopped long ago. (CBC) Darryl Plecas took the job as speaker when the NDP formed government which got him kicked out of the Liberal party. $258K retirement payout called into question in Plecas report He had been on the job less than 18 months when he moved to have the Sergeant at Arms and Clerk of the House put on administrative leave. Lenz and James said in a statement released Monday that they expect to be exonerated in due course. Now he's being hailed as a whistle-blower. Travis says Plecas is owed an apology by many. "He did his job. He was the only one frankly who stood up to do that job." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JM_ Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 6 minutes ago, Warhippy said: For me, it's the majorities in BC that the Liberals had. I have NO doubt that some long term NDP MLA's stuck their hands in the cookie jar. But effectively being in power without challenge for just over 16 years meant that they effectively changed the rules, to do whatever they wanted. Barisoffs retirement handling is absolutely egregious and cannot be claimed to be a mistake at all, he was in power for almost 2 decades. This is all at the hands of the BC Liberals, they created the system, they chose the individuals, they changed the rules. There is little to no possible way the NDP can be blamed for this; although it won't stop people from seeking out other MLA's with other party affiliations to shine the light on to deflect the heat how could anyone do that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warhippy Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 4 minutes ago, Jimmy McGill said: how could anyone do that? Do what? Be blamed or be blame free? As a part minority you have literally no power to write laws or fill positions in the legislature. That is left to the speaker and the ruling party. For 16 years those positions were both held by.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JM_ Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 1 minute ago, Warhippy said: Do what? Be blamed or be blame free? As a part minority you have literally no power to write laws or fill positions in the legislature. That is left to the speaker and the ruling party. For 16 years those positions were both held by.... blame the NDP for the loose book keeping rules. That would be one hell of a logic pretzel if someone could pull that off and stick it on the NDP, even if as you say some of them also took advantage of it which I'm sure some have. I know you disliked Watts, but one of the reasons I was hoping for her to win the Liberal leadership was for the leadership renewal if nothing else. If the Liberals don't disconnect from the Campbell/Clark years there won't be an effective opposition, and I don't care who's in power, thats rarely a good thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gizmo2337 Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 I think one of the problems is how long an MLA can serve. The longest serving ones seem the most complacent and able to abuse the system. For interest sake, I did a quick tally on the liberals for number of years served. Now, it may not be pinpoint accurate, but you get the idea. I'm willing to bet that anyone in double digits will probably have their name in this audit. Linda Reid's name has already come out. I can't help but wonder how many more... Mike de Jong 23 Simon Gibson 5 Linda Larson 5 Donna Barnett 9 Coralee Oakes 5 John Martin 5 Laurie Throness 5 Doug Clovechok 1 Joan Isaacs 1 Ian Paton 1 Jackie Tegart 5 Peter Milobar 1 Todd Stone 5 Norm Letnick 9 Steve Thomson 9Christy Clark 22 Ben Stewart 9 Tom Shypitka 1Mary Polak 13Rich Coleman 23 John Rustad 9 Jane Thornthwaite 9 Michelle Stilwell 5 Dan Davies 1 Mike Bernier 5 Dan Ashton 5 Mike Morris 5Shirley Bond 17 Teresa Wat 5Linda Reid 27 Jas Johal 1John Yap 13 Greg Kyllo 5 Ellis Ross 1 Marvin Hunt 5 Stephanie Cadieux 9 Tracy Redies 1 Sam Sullivan 5 Michael Lee 1 Andrew Wilkinson 5 Eric Foster 9Ralph Sultan 17 Jordan Sturdy 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob_Zepp Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 This all seems pretty simply. SOMEONE approved these. That SOMEONE has a boss too. That SOMEONE and that SOMEONE's BOSS are where the real problem is here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gizmo2337 Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 55 minutes ago, Rob_Zepp said: This all seems pretty simply. SOMEONE approved these. That SOMEONE has a boss too. That SOMEONE and that SOMEONE's BOSS are where the real problem is here. My guess is that SOMEONE..... was Christy Clark. Tell me your gut feeling doesn't say that... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob_Zepp Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 10 minutes ago, gizmo2337 said: My guess is that SOMEONE..... was Christy Clark. Tell me your gut feeling doesn't say that... Sure, it could have been and continued to be the new guy (Hogan?). Either way, these two may be bumbling spend crazy idiots but they did it under full approval of someone(s). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drummer4now Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 4 hours ago, gizmo2337 said: I think one of the problems is how long an MLA can serve. The longest serving ones seem the most complacent and able to abuse the system. For interest sake, I did a quick tally on the liberals for number of years served. Now, it may not be pinpoint accurate, but you get the idea. I'm willing to bet that anyone in double digits will probably have their name in this audit. Linda Reid's name has already come out. I can't help but wonder how many more... Mike de Jong 23 Simon Gibson 5 Linda Larson 5 Donna Barnett 9 Coralee Oakes 5 John Martin 5 Laurie Throness 5 Doug Clovechok 1 Joan Isaacs 1 Ian Paton 1 Jackie Tegart 5 Peter Milobar 1 Todd Stone 5 Norm Letnick 9 Steve Thomson 9Christy Clark 22 Ben Stewart 9 Tom Shypitka 1Mary Polak 13Rich Coleman 23 John Rustad 9 Jane Thornthwaite 9 Michelle Stilwell 5 Dan Davies 1 Mike Bernier 5 Dan Ashton 5 Mike Morris 5Shirley Bond 17 Teresa Wat 5Linda Reid 27 Jas Johal 1John Yap 13 Greg Kyllo 5 Ellis Ross 1 Marvin Hunt 5 Stephanie Cadieux 9 Tracy Redies 1 Sam Sullivan 5 Michael Lee 1 Andrew Wilkinson 5 Eric Foster 9Ralph Sultan 17 Jordan Sturdy 5 I was just going to say some of these people have been in the legislative for a long time... I mean Horgan has been in since the 90’s... there should be term limits or at least tenures. One problem is the BC legislative is small compared to other provinces and since it’s on Van isle less competition/ interest in becoming a MLA or politician. So essentialy these people are set for life once they become an MLA People need to stop voting these crooks into power... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drummer4now Posted January 23, 2019 Share Posted January 23, 2019 Also this sort of corruption is world wide so nothing new.. it’s even worse in places like the US, Europe, and Australia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johngould21 Posted January 24, 2019 Share Posted January 24, 2019 18 hours ago, drummer4now said: I was just going to say some of these people have been in the legislative for a long time... I mean Horgan has been in since the 90’s... there should be term limits or at least tenures. One problem is the BC legislative is small compared to other provinces and since it’s on Van isle less competition/ interest in becoming a MLA or politician. So essentialy these people are set for life once they become an MLA People need to stop voting these crooks into power... Pardon me, you've lost me with this comment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johngould21 Posted January 24, 2019 Share Posted January 24, 2019 Apparently Craig James was promoted by, and had his name put forward by, drum roll please......Rich Coleman. I see a common denominator in the 16 years of Liberal Government. Coleman was always close to Christy Clark and held a whole lot of influence in decision making in her Cabinet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JM_ Posted January 24, 2019 Share Posted January 24, 2019 2 hours ago, johngould21 said: Apparently Craig James was promoted by, and had his name put forward by, drum roll please......Rich Coleman. I see a common denominator in the 16 years of Liberal Government. Coleman was always close to Christy Clark and held a whole lot of influence in decision making in her Cabinet. I doubt Coleman had the time to have a direct hand in the spending, but he probably looked the other way as well, or more likely just didn't care to look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingofsurrey Posted January 24, 2019 Share Posted January 24, 2019 #brokenBC So sad to see what has happened to our once beautiful fantastic province..... ruined by greed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drummer4now Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 12 hours ago, johngould21 said: Pardon me, you've lost me with this comment. I live on the island its true... Hence why the same crooks keep getting elected. Not very many people are interested in relocating to Vancouver Island, if it was relocated to Vancouver that would be a different story. This sort of problem is not found in the Alberta and Ontario legislatives. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingofsurrey Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 A guy that works at my local bowling alley.... once took home a used pair of size 10 bowling shoes.... and he never returned them........ I heard a rumor that he also took home a 6 pack of Dr. Peppers as well but i did not actually see this happen.... so only a rumor.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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