The word “unprecedented” applies to several aspects of the large-scale public investigation underway in Ottawa.
After all, the commission is investigating the first use of the Federal Emergency Act during the “Freedom Convoy.” a global pandemic.
But the dramatic conclusion of this week’s Public Order Emergency Committee hearings is not the first a Canada’s Prime Minister announced his position a Investigative committee.
First Prime Minister Sir John aMacDonald testified at . a The original question was phrased as: And then the answer began. a story? “
It took more than 100 years for another Prime Minister to be able to do so. Here are the few occasions when modern leaders have sworn themselves in, and the consequences that followed.
1980: Pierre Trudeau
Unlike his son, Pierre Trudeau refused to testify publicly before the McDonald’s Commission. The McDonald Commission went on strike in 1977 to investigate “certain activities of the RCMP” by the then liberal government.
But Elder Trudeau spoke behind closed doors, and his testimony in 1980 was compiled into a final report filed in 1981 by Alberta Judge David Cargill Macdonald. So were the reasons and legal opinions behind the decision. a Notary.
The report details allegations of misconduct by the then RCMP Security Service, which was then responsible for national security intelligence and law enforcement and was accused of failing to prevent the October 1970 crisis.
Its recommendations include: a MacDonald also recommended updating the War Measures Act and the role of Congress in emergencies, some of which were eventually incorporated into the Emergency Act of 1988.
Trudeau retired from politics in 1984 and was succeeded by John Turner. a landslide defeat a federal election in the same year.
2005: Jean Chrétien
In early 2004, shortly after taking over the Liberal Party from Jean Chrétien, then-Prime Minister Paul Martin called: a Commission of Inquiry into Sponsorship Programs and Advertising Activities, led by Judge John Gomery of Quebec.
The Gomery Inquiry, as it became known, delved into the sponsorship scandal that has plagued the Liberal government for years. Audits and media reports raised serious questions of wrongdoing. a Sponsorship program aimed at promoting federalism in Quebec following the 1995 referendum.
Chrétien appeared before the February 2005 interrogation, a I fully defend his efforts to protect federalism—and a A briefcase full of golf balls.
The former prime minister’s lawyer argued that Gomery should be excluded from the investigation because he publicly criticized Chrétien for allowing his name to be printed. a A series of golf balls.of a A memorable stunt, what Chrétien’s lawyer gave him a At the end of his testimony, a chance to draw on the various gifts of golf balls he has received from the President of the United States and others.
While Chrétien maintained his innocence and said he knew nothing of the details of the sponsorship deal, Gomery admitted he was “responsible for the flawed manner” in which the program was implemented. a Final report in November. Some of those involved have been criminally charged.
But Chrétien and a The chief of staff later sued the federal government over the findings and won. a A federal judge found in 2008 that Gomery had shown prejudice against the former prime minister. The government rejected his appeal of that decision in 2010.
2005: Paul Martin
Martin was the incumbent Prime Minister when he testified at the Gomery Inquiry just days after Chrétien’s candidacy.
He distanced himself from the sponsorship program, claiming that as Minister of Finance under Chrétien, he had largely overseen federal government spending without knowing the finer details at the departmental level.
Ultimately, Gomery absolved Martin of personal liability.but there was a Great political blow to liberals.
internal a Report month, Martin lost a A vote of confidence in the House of Commons led to elections in January 2006 and a new Conservative Party led by Stephen Harper came to power.
2009: Brian Mulroney
In 2008, Harper appointed Judge Jeffrey Oliphant of Manitoba to a German-Canadian arms lobbyists gave Mulroney large sums of cash in 1993 and 1994 in connection with the production of the proposed armored vehicle.
In May 2009, Mulroney urged Harper to a A public inquiry was the only way to clear his name and he was called to testify.
During his six-day testimony, he said it was “absurd” to suggest that he was hired to work with the government while he was running it. and said he regretted the decision to accept the cash, although he said there had been “no wrongdoing of any kind.”
Oliphant accepts cash payments a A plan to avoid exposing the relationship to the public eye. But he found no evidence that the money had changed hands while Mulroney was prime minister. a ten times.
Oliphant found that Mulroney had failed to adhere to his own ethical guidelines by applying the standards of the conflict of interest rules introduced during his tenure in 1985.
Mary Daniel Smith
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