Gas Busters Part 49: Robert Prichard Connection

Congrats to Karen Howlett and Adrian Morrow of the Globe & Mail for breaking an important story on Prichard’s connection to the gas scandal. I have been pursuing Prichard’s connection through FOI since last November, but getting stonewalled at every turn.

Notice that Prichard was appointed to McGuinty’s Economic Advisory Panel in the midst of the gas plant negotiations but prior to what we now know about his involvement in the gas negotiations. Notice also that Prichard’s role was not addressed in the Auditor General’s report.

I believe that Rob Prichard was effectively the OPA’s negotiator but that the OPA didn’t hire him and he may not have reported to the OPA. Rather, he was parachuted in by Bentley or McGuinty and appears to have reported through the Deputy Minister Serge Imbrogno, who previously testified to the Justice Policy Committee of the Ontario Legislature but did not indicate any connection with Mr. Prichard.

My FOI appeal now in the hands of the Information and Privacy Commissioner is also likely to yield new information on the role of Mr. Prichard, if the documents connecting McGuinty and Prichard have not been destroyed. One of the reasons I have been denied access to documents that I believe relate to Mr. Prichard is with reference to solicitor-client privilege. I note that privilege only applies to legal advice. To the extent that Mr. Prichard was giving advice related to commercial negotiations, I take the position that no privilege exists.

The Justice Policy Committee must call Mr. Prichard to answer some key questions:

How did Mr. Prichard get the assignment? Who did Mr. Prichard report to?

Was it Mr. Prichard’s job to get a deal with EIG and Eastern before the July 9, 2012 committee appearance of Minister Bentley so that the minister could make a good announcement?

How is it that ratepayers made an interest-free loan to Eastern?

What was Mr. Prichard’s role in EIG getting paid out at more than two time the Criminal Code rate of interest?

4 Comments

  1. Ontario Investigates the Gas Plant Scandals — and others…

    Curtis & Leroy from Punkeydoodles Corners, Ontario saw an ad in the New Hamburg Independent Newspaper , while lunching at MeMe’s Restaurant in New Hamburg Ontario and subsequently bought a mule for $100.

    The farmer agreed to deliver the mule the next day.

    The following morning the farmer drove up, and said: “Sorry, fellers, I have some bad news for you, the mule died last night.”

    Curtis & Leroy replied; “Well then, just give us our money back.”

    The farmer said; ” Can’t do that…I went and spent it already.”

    They said; “Okay then, just bring us the dead mule.”

    The farmer asked; “What in the world ya’ll gonna do with a dead mule?”

    Curtis said; “We gonn’a raffle him off.”

    The farmer said; “You can’t raffle off a dead mule!”

    Leroy said; “We shore can! Heck, we don’t hafta tell nobody he’s dead!”

    A couple of weeks later, the farmer ran into Curtis & Leroy at the Punkeydoodles Corners, Ontario Co-Op grocery store and asked: “Say…what’d you fellers ever do with that dead mule?”
    Curtis, said; “We raffled him off like we said we wuz gonn’a do.”

    Leroy added; “Shucks, we sold 500 tickets fer two dollars a piece and made a profit of $898.”

    The farmer said; “My Lord, didn’t anyone complain…?”

    Curtis said; “Well, the feller who won was really upset. So we gave him his two dollars back.”

    Curtis and Leroy now work for the Ontario government as senior investigative executives. They’re now overseeing the investigation of the eHealth, Gas Plant and Wind Turbine scandals on behalf of the Premier’s office. A report is expected any day real soon now.

  2. Pingback: Cracks beginning to open up in Gas Plant Scandal!!!! | The Big Green Lie

  3. Dalton:

    Recently the legislature held hearings into the gas plant scandals where the Ontario Liberals were accused of wasting more than half a billion dollars of the provinces money. The Conservatives complained that Premier Kathleen Wynne’s earlier testimony at the committee “strained the bounds of credibility,” and said other Liberal witnesses showed what PC Leader Tim Hudak called “a troubling case of collective amnesia.”

    When the Conservatives threatened to force Dalton McGuinty to testify – knowing that he would likely be able to show that Kathleen Wynne had “lied” – she replied “Dalton – Who?”

    Many of you may remember a similar song by Tom Lehrer about Hubert H. Humphrey a much forgotten liberal VP of the United States – second to Lyndon Baines Johnson. (LBJ)

    Play the video clip first – so that you know the tunme and can hummm along or even sing the words to:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ld7VVBztuVM

    “Dalton Who?” ??????

    (And all of a sudden Ontario was singing…)

    Whatever became of Dalton?
    Has anyone heard a thing?
    Once he shone on his own,
    Now he sits home alone,
    And waits for the phone to ring.

    Once a fiery Liberal spirit,
    Ah, but now when he speaks he must clear it.
    Second fiddle’s a hard part, I know,
    When they don’t even give you a bow.

    “We must protest his treatment,” Dalton,
    Says each Toronto Star (and CBC) reader.
    As someone once remarked to ET,
    “Take us to your Leader”.

    Whatever became of you Dalton?
    Are you dreaming you’ll testify?
    Revealing her lies!
    By quoting the memos you hid?

    Once a man who wielded great power!
    How could our previous Premier sink lower?
    But now he’s outside!
    In the cold that so bites,
    Like a blizzard on stark winter nights.
    Because he (ahem) lied!

    (Spoken)“I deleted nothing!
    The Hard Drive died!
    My Cell Phone quit!” (end Spoken)

    Said Dalton the non-techno wizard!

    With 99 reasons revealed!
    It’s easy to see how they wielded,
    The delete key so freely,
    While removing so easily,
    The evidence of their malfeasance!

    Whatever became of you, Dalton?
    We miss you, so tell us please.
    Are you sad? Are you cross? Are you gathering moss
    While you wait for the bailiff to seize,
    All your records and memory keys?

    Does Kathleen, recalling when she was nobody,
    Say, “I’ll do unto you like they did unto me?”
    Do you dream about staging a coup?
    Dalton, what happened to you?

    Read more: http://www.cp24.com/news/mcguinty-s-ex-chief-of-staff-says-rules-required-emails-be-wiped-1.1330139#ixzz2WhlwpYjy

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