Premier misled public over tender: PCs

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 06/04/2016 (3641 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

MANITOBA Progressive Conservatives say they have proof Greg Selinger misled Manitobans about when he ordered the tendering of a contract to provide flood-control equipment to First Nation communities in 2014.

The premier has said he personally intervened on Oct. 9 of that year to ensure the contract was tendered. But a copy of a document released by the PCs Wednesday challenges that assertion.

The two-page document, titled Advisory Note for the Premier, dated Oct. 23, 2014, urgently asks for direction from Selinger on the awarding of a $5-million untendered contract for the flood equipment.

The note, from an unnamed government official, raises financial, ethical and legal concerns about the contract for Tiger Dam equipment sold by a person known to be a financial supporter of Manitoba Infrastructure and Transportation Minister Steve Ashton.

“Due to a long-standing relationship between the MIT minister and the proposed vendor (including past political contributions), there is serious risk of a real or perceived conflict of interest, if not possible legal issues,” the note to the premier says. “A competitive open tender or RFP (request for proposals) is the best way to mitigate this risk.”

The memo notes Ashton and Aboriginal and Northern Affairs Minister Eric Robinson had announced $5 million in provincial funding for flood-control equipment for a proposed operations centre run by Interlake Regional Tribal Council on July 25, 2014.

“MIT has since been pursuing Treasury Board approval for this expenditure, though senior MIT and TBS (Treasury Board Secretariat) officials have raised concerns about the lack of a competitive tender, a potential or perceived conflict of interest, and the third-party ownership of the flood equipment,” the briefing note says.

The province eventually issued a request for proposals for the flood-mitigation equipment on Dec. 19, 2014. Ultimately, the province never bought the equipment.

The federal government bought the Tiger Dams for the First Nations.

Steinbach PC MLA Kelvin Goertzen said Wednesday the document shows the premier was aware of serious legal and ethical concerns about the Tiger Dams contract.

“This advisory to the premier calls into question whether or not the information he provided both to the legislature and otherwise was accurate and truthful,” Goertzen said, referring to when Selinger is said to have ordered the contract be tendered.

It was later revealed the manner in which the sole-source contract was handled by government contributed to the mutiny that saw five ministers resign from Selinger’s cabinet Nov. 3, 2014.

The copy of the memo to Selinger obtained by the PCs is not signed. Goertzen said the Tories are satisfied with its authenticity, as the same source has provided them with accurate information in the past.

A provincial source familiar with the document confirmed its legitimacy late Wednesday after viewing a copy passed on by the Free Press.

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

Election Extra

During Elections

Get campaign news, insight, analysis and commentary delivered to your inbox during civic, provincial and federal elections.

Sign up for Election Extra

Sign Up

I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

Asked for comment, the NDP re-election campaign issued a statement saying Selinger was clear he directed the contract be put to tender. However, the statement was silent on when that directive was issued.

“We referred this matter to the ombudsman, who reviewed this matter once again and made recommendations, which are in the process of being implemented,” the NDP said.

In January, the ombudsman reported the province contravened its own purchasing policies in 2014 when Manitoba Infrastructure and Transportation made an aborted effort to buy the $5 million in flood equipment. The ombudsman found MIT “lacked sufficient justification” for pursuing a sole-sourced contract and didn’t do enough research and analysis to support buying Tiger Dams instead of other flood-fighting products. The report said Ashton told flood-fighting officials to pursue the untendered contract, even though civil servants didn’t think buying Tiger Dams was the best use of provincial money.

larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca