Carol Goodfellow:
The most dangerous and insidious Politician in Canada right now is Danielle Smith. Smith feeds the far right wing rhetoric to the extreme, to escalate situations, that could so easily cross over into violence. Rather than acknowledging the concerns as valid and de-escalating. Smith instigates vindictiveness and hatred, rather than democracy. Albertans want Smith gone. Smith does not support or represent 75% of Albertans, who are Canadian first, last and always. So ashamed that this is what Alberta has become under these MAGA Reformers. There is no place for corruption in Alberta politics.
@TheBreakdownAB:
Danielle Smith – “They won’t shut me up!”
Also Danielle Smith – “Shut up!”
@BrianHerron18:
If Danielle & UCP are not guilty then why all the cloak & dagger ?
beachmagoo:
The email appears to direct Alberta healthcare not to talk to the AG.
In order to perform an audit the Auditor General needs free and unfettered access to records and people.
What is @ABDanielleSmith doing and why?
@emayeg2:
Her interference discredits the whole process. @AuditorGenAB #JudgeWyant
AndreTremblay & #DarrenHedley need to be put under oath.
CorruptCare #IbelieveATHANA
NeverSmith #NeverUCP
Roland Durandal:
Smith and the UCP are among the worst if not the worst provincial politicians in Canada measured by competence and integrity or perhaps better stated the lack of same and this is mostly thanks to Jason Kenney who largely created this monstrosity. But we live in a democracy and enough Albertans favour Smith and the UCP to put her in the Premier’s chair which speaks volumes about the Alberta electorate much like Trumps election for a second term speaks volumes about the American electorate. As a Canadian and an Albertan who believes in democracy and majority rule I have to live with Smith and the UCP government but I sure don’t have to like it and I really, really dislike it.
Steven M:
The bigger picture here is the corruption and ethical morals of elected government officials. LaGrange and Smith trying to impede the investigation speaks volumes for their participation in taking kick backs.
This not about doctors and private surgical companies who use the system in a fair and equitable procurement system!
Andrew Thorsen:
Predictably the Premiers office is now interfering in the investigation of allegations that involve interference from the Premiers office.
The only way the allegations will be resolved is through an independent inquiry.
Mark Pearson:
Oil and coal lobbyist Danielle Smith and her UCP trillion dollar deficit party are in my opinion the most morally and in all other ways corrupt government in Alberta if not Canadian history. I lived through the Klein years and thought he was unbeatable. She is templating the worst aspects of the Trump regime to turn Alberta into a fascist state with herself as our sovereign.
Bob Loblaw:
Smith claimed that this issue would be investigated with “full transparency and cooperation”. I guess she lied. Again. Why would they try to block evidence? Oh I am sure the UCP bots will come up with some goofy explanation. Smith is going down on this.
Tess Danielsrudeon:
The UCP asked the Auditor General to investigate. Now they say, “talk to our lawyer” when he wants to interview them? Do they want the answers or not? Good grief.
Steven M:
And LaGrange along with Danielle Smith promised all albertans a full and transparent investigation. The lies never end with the United Crack Party…Why?
Dan Smith:
Nothing as funny and when the conservatives prove their guilt by their own actions; again and again and again….
Do people have a right to believe that conservatives are guilty by their own actions?
Steven M:
In a kind way Alberta’s attorney general is calling out LaGrange and Danielle Smith for lying to Albertans in the worst scandal ever to hit the Alberta Government!
Funny how the usual United Corrupt Party supporters are quiet today. Their silence says it all!
Ya! Where are Quisling Smitty Poo Poo’s boss men, Preston Manning and Stevie Harper? Agents of destruction of Canada and our public health care, serving America’s Orange Nazis that Smith loves so deeply, working to destroy Canada for and harm all Canadians (ya, even the racist misogynistic Canada-hating Alberta MAGAts screaming “freedom”)? And where is most recent law-violating bully boy, extreme Evangelical David Parker? Suddenly, the big ugly “Christian” men are silent.
Lynette Brown:
I don’t know what else to say, except that this is priceless.
Thank goodness this AG is a tough nut, stands by the rule of law and his mandate.
Reading the context would help. “This came as a surprise to the auditor general, and our office will be seeking clarity on why that communication (the memo) was sent,” says a statement from his office. “We were not aware of, nor did we endorse, that proposed action. That is not a standard practice our office typically encounters in the course of its work.”
David Mulroney:
Considering how Alberta went from bad to worse with kenney getting kicked out and smith getting as ucp leader, im a bit frightened to think what the fringe would replace smith with. So my hope is that the ucp lose out badly next election. Then the fringe can go back into the hole they crawled out of.
But meanwhile I hope there is some way to stop the destruction and division smith and her group are inflicting on Alberta. Not to mention the corruption and misuse of tax payer money.
Robert Miller:
How many times does the government have to be caught lying, covering up, or incompetent before the 50% of traitor Smith’s supporters who aren’t Maple MAGA finally accept what we have been saying all along.
If she was innocent, if her government wasn’t corrupt, she would have called a judicial inquiry to investigate it all. Instead these people are playing games, lying, and trying to suppress evidence, as I said they would. Come on people, put your partisanship glasses down, and start putting your province and country first. If this was an NDP government, I would be saying the same thing.
Maries Views:
I have zero confidence in our government managing anything to do with healthcare. It seems the Premier was outright lying when said will get to the bottom of the procurement issue quickly, correct any wrongdoing and address it properly. That she wants it to be transparent and expedited, that she ordered government officials to fully cooperate. Fully cooperate, what a joke! What a difference from February.
Anne Bouscal:
I have zero confidence in our government tying its shoes.
The premier and the minister lie, than are outraged when called on it. She must have been shocked when she found out that the AG doesn’t report to her so she can’t control him.
I can hardly wait until this matter gets to court for any of the wrongful dismissal, interference in a lawful investigation or for fraudulent use of taxpayer dollars to reward a certain company with over-priced surgical contracts or anything else the RCMP or AG or anything Mentzelopoulos and her lawyers can dig out.
Bill Payer:
She just doesn’t know what boundaries are,obviously. First sign of having no respect,quite often. Just keeps sticking her nose into the wheel of justice. Hopefully,we won’t even have to worry about voting for her again. And good for the AG for standing up for Albertans. Thinking Albertans support you!
Dave Morgan:
Which floor can she cross this time? Mar-a-Lago, here she comes.
Government tries to deflect auditor general to lawyers — No way, says Doug Wylie, The health-care procurement scandal is fast morphing into one of the most epic legal battles Alberta has ever seen by Don Braid, April 11, 2024 Calgary Herald
Call our lawyer.
Alberta government officials are ordered to say that when the Auditor General wants to question them for his contract scandal investigation.
Auditor General Doug Wylie is not pleased
He rejects the government telling officials to “redirect” his interview requests to an external lawyer.In my view and experience, lawyers lie, a lot, so do judges, notably retired ones hired by corrupt gov’ts to do “reviews” for them, and answerable only to them. Not that Smith or Lagrange have much respect for Albertans, Canadians, health, honesty or the law either.
And he contradicts the health minister’s claim that he knew about the government involving its lawyer, as outlined in a leaked government memo.
It’s yet another blow-up in the scandal over procurement for private surgery contracts and the “Turkish Tylenol” deal.
“This came as a surprise to the auditor general, and our office will be seeking clarity on why that communication (the memo) was sent,” says a statement from his office.
“We were not aware of, nor did we endorse, that proposed action. That is not a standard practice our office typically encounters in the course of its work.”
The memo from a senior deputy minister commands officials, when asked to appear for an interview, to “redirect the OAG to our legal counsel.
“That should be done by email, and with a copy to me and our legal counsel.”
The memo then suggests wording for emails.HA HA HA! The fucking gall of evil Smith and her corrupt UCP KKKlan never ceases to amaze.
Health Minister Adriane LaGrange’s office said Friday that this happens all the time and the auditor general knew it was being done.In my view, you’re not much more than an anti-health sleaze bucket liar Ms. LaGrunge, a shitty liar at that, as shitty as the Fanta Fascist.
“The process for co-ordinating interviews was approved by the OAG, and they were aware that all requests for interviews and documentation would be co-ordinated through legal counsel,” LaGrange’s office had said.Do they not see how fucking stupid they sound, every time they open their mouths?
“Legal representation helps ensure procedural fairness and that individuals understand their rights, obligations and the scope of their participation in the investigation.”
Is that the stench of guilt filling Alberta’s air? It reeks and is more deadly than industry’s leaking and illegally venting sour gas that we normally breath
In this case, it also makes darn sure the government knows everything an official tells the auditor general.
Wylie could not have been more clear — he neither knew about nor approved the practice.
“We want Albertans to understand that the Auditor General will do everything necessary within his power to ensure he has access to the information and the individuals required for his work,” the statement from his office said.
Wylie reviews departmental performance all the time. He has a revolving door for officials trying to explain why they spent this or failed to accomplish that.
In typical low-voltage cases, interview requests might be funnelled through a single department official.
But officials have never before been ordered to say “talk to my lawyer” when the auditor general comes calling.
It’s another sign that the health-care procurement scandal is fast morphing into one of the most epic legal battles Alberta has ever seen.
On Friday, the government asked for an injunction against fired AHS boss Athana Mentzelopoulos, to prevent her from making legal use of emails she sent to her private address as she was being fired.
The judge’s decision was reserved to a later date.
Also Friday, MHCare Medical Corp sent a letter to the government saying all allegations of improper dealings are scurrilous falsehoods.
The company, and owner Sam Mraiche, sound like they’re loading up for legal action, after weeks of allegations that they were awarded favoured contracts through influence from government officials.
An RCMP investigation is also proceeding. I’m told the Mounties are taking this case very seriously. They have a team at work. People involved have been questioned rigorously, often for hours.Ya ya ya. They said same about Jason Kenney. I have zero trust in the RCMP or any Alberta police, they serve polluting profit-raping companies and corrupt politicians, even though we pay the police/RCMP salaries, expenses and pensions. Instead of investigating illegal aquifer frac’er Encana, Calgary police and RCMP, under Herr Hideous Harper’s anti-terrorist squad, invaded my private property without a warrant, investigated and terrorized me (trying to make me shut up, and drop my lawsuit against Alberta gov’t, AER and Encana). For years, the RCMP “investigated” Jason Kenney’s hanky panky to sleaze onto leadership of the UCP, then, just dropped it, protecting him, when he was punted by voters. Many more examples of police corruption and lies on this website and elsewhere.
And then there’s the government’s own internal inquiry, conducted by Raymond E. Wyant, recently retired chief judge of the Manitoba provincial court. He’s expected to probe both private clinic contracts and the disastrous deal for a Tylenol substitute. The judge is supposed to produce a final report by the end of June.As with most “reviews” by retired judges, I expect this to be a wash (after endless delays and more funding requests), with pre-determined outcome (written by Smith and her lawyers before the judge was hired?) concluding she’s a saint to con rural Evangelical Albertans into voting UCP a bigger majority next time. It smells like she ought to be in prison, along side her Nazi lover pal, convicted felon rapist Trump.
Ann Telane’s cartoon today is brilliant and fits Danielle Smith’s Health Procurement Scandal and her betraying Canada and all Canadians to Trump.
What began with the firing of a 30-year government veteran who suspected wrongdoing has turned into a bitter round of charges and counter charges.
Since Mentzelopoulos sued for wrongful dismissal, the government has not only disputed her claims but tried to paint her as incompetent.
She filled many roles with the government, including deputy finance minister, before she was named to the top AHS job with a mandate to cut costs and fit the health authority into the new Acute Care structure.
This is ugly — and still escalating.
Don Braid’s column appears regularly in the Herald
X and Bluesky: @DonBraid
Steven M April 2, 2025 (comment to Edmonton Journal article linked above):
It’s hilarious that the United Corrupt Party spoke person Staples will wait to make a final decision on whether Traitor Danielle Smith and LaGrange or any other UCP individual is guilty of taking financial compensation from MYCare…..LOL
Don’t be fooled fellow Albertans Staples is already writing his response to the RCMP findings to justify the UCP corruption.
Most of Staples UCP propaganda statement in the EJ is trying to tie the NDP to MYCare and Mraiche.
The most important thing to remember is in 4 years of NDP running Alberta they never had “ONE” single business deals with sketchy company, none. Yet the UCP and TRAITOR Danielle Smith made them a contractor of choice for AHS. If Smith will do that for hockey tickets what would she do for higher financial gifts? Or perhaps thats exactly what her and LaGrange have received as well.Or perhaps a nice condo in Panama, or somewhere near her Nazi orange convicted felon rapist, all expenses paid?
Don’t talk to auditor general about dodgy contracts until you’ve talked to our lawyer: government email to AHS staff, NDP Justice Critic Irfan Sabir calls assistant deputy minister’s email ‘a gag order on public servants, plain and simple’ by David Climenhaga, April 11, 2025, Alberta Politics
In early February, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith publicly urged Alberta’s auditor general to get cracking with his just-started investigation into allegations of dodgy contracts being forced on Alberta Health Services by officials with connections to her government and even her office.
“We need to get to the bottom of this issue quickly to identify any potential wrongdoing, correct it, and address it appropriately,” Premier Smith said in a Saturday morning statement on Feb. 8.
That was then. This is now, and you’d almost think Smith’s government is taking action to ensure that Auditor General Doug Wylie doesn’t discover anything too damaging.
Leastways, an email sent to thousands of AHS staff members and Health Department employees by Senior Assistant Deputy Minister of Health Leann Wagner directs employees who are contacted for an interview by the Office of the Auditor General to “please redirect the OAG to our legal counsel Rose LLP.”
“This should be done by email with a copy to me to (sic) and our legal counsel Matt Lindsey at Rose LLP,” Ms. Wagner wrote in the email, which was leaked to the Opposition NDP.
Now, to be fair, the email goes on to say that “Mr. Lindsey will coordinate all interview requests.” This seems like unusual work for legal counsel and probably something the OAG staff is quite capable of arranging itself, but it also sounds like that’ll be the government’s explanation.
NDP Justice Critic Irfan Sabir interpreted the purpose of the email in a much darker light. “The UCP continues to prevent Albertans from getting answers to the CorruptCare scandal,” he said, using the label the NDP has adopted to describe the dodgy contracts affair.
“This is a gag order on public servants, plain and simple,” Mr. Sabir said bluntly in an email sent to journalists. “Limiting the Auditor General from doing their job and speaking with government staff is a cover-up.”
The allegations first surfaced in public in a Feb. 5 Globe and Mail story about the contents of a letter from the lawyer representing Athana Mentzelopoulos, the former CEO of AHS who had been dismissed a few days before – although, despite appearances, the government insists that it didn’t fire the handpicked executive, AHS did.
Ms. Mentzelopoulos is now suing the government for $1.7 million for wrongful dismissal and her statement of claim, the government’s statement of defence, and other legal documents have been widely aired in public.
Mr. Wylie had revealed the Thursday before Premier Smith’s Feb. 8 comment that his investigation into the allegations had already begun. At that point, the NDP was already calling for a full judicial inquiry, led by an independent judge, with the power to compel testimony.
The government would like to avoid any process it cannot tightly control, obviously. And the leaked staff email certainly suggests it might go quite far to control what gets talked about.
“This is precisely what we’ve been warning about,” Mr. Sabir said yesterday in his letter to media. “There cannot be an investigation if the government is not compelled to give information as we have seen time and time again with stymied Auditor General reports.”
“The government must reverse course, release all public servants including fired AHS staff and Board of Directors from their gag orders, welcome the Auditor General’s investigation into CorruptCare, and finally, call a fully independent, judicial-led public inquiry today to get to the bottom of this scandal,” he said.
Separatist fringe party says 11 MLAs support independence referendum
A separatist fringe political party has published a list of 11 United Conservative Party MLAs and cabinet members it says support a binding independence referendum before the next provincial election.
The Republican Party of Alberta – which is presumably republican in every sense of that word – published the “MLA Independence Scorecard” on its website. Readers of this blog, I am sure, will be relieved to learn there are no members of the NDP Opposition on this list.
It’s not immediately clear how the folks at the RPA came up with the list, which does include a couple of names that that seem unlikely to be backers of such a venture. Still, Jeremy Appel, the independent reporter who broke the story, says he called them all and none responded.
So, without further ado, here they are in alphabetical order:
- MLA Eric Bouchard, Calgary Lougheed
- MLA Scott Cyr, Bonnyville-Cold Lake-St. Paul
- Transportation Minister Devin Dreeshen, Innisfail-Sylvan Lake
- Government Whip and Parliamentary Secretary Shane Getson, Lac Ste. Anne-Parkland
- MLA Jennifer Johnson, Lacombe-Ponoka
- Infrastructure Minister Martin Long, West Yellowhead
- Municipal Affairs Minister Ric McIver, Calgary-Hays
- Red Tape Reduction Minister Dale Nally, Morinville-St. Albert
- MLA Chelsae Petrovic, Livingstone-Macleod
- MLA Angela Pitt, Airdrie-East
- Advanced Education Minister Rajan Sawhney, Calgary-North West
I would be genuinely shocked if either Mr. McIver and Ms. Sawhney actually told anyone they supported a separatism referendum. And I have my doubts about ministers Long and Nally or Mr. Cyr doing anything that dumb.
As for the rest, though, nothing would surprise me. Mr. Bouchard’s claim to fame is his anti-vaxx views; Mr. Dreeshen infamously campaigned for Donald Trump and was photographed in a red MAGA cap; Mr. Getson joined at least one convoy protest in Edmonton; Ms. Johnson is the notorious poop-cookie lady; Ms. Petrovic made headlines saying heart attack victims should take responsibility for their own illness; and Ms. Pitt has mused that Alberta could someday become a semi-autonomous statelet like Austria’s South Tyrol.
As for Ms. Smith, she’s playing cute about a referendum – saying she won’t lead the charge but threatening a national unity crisis if the Conservatives don’t win the federal election and reminding her supporters they can gin up their own question using provincial referenda legislation.
Every one of them now needs to make it clear where they stand on this question.
UPDATE, 10:45 p.m., April 11, 2025: After this post was first published this morning, a spokesperson for the Republican Party of Alberta told reporter Jeremy Appel, whose scoop was noted in this story, that the list was based on public statements by the MLA. Mr. Appel said the spokesperson told him anyone on their list was welcome to ask them to remove their name. DJC
Simon Renouf:
DC, Great column, as always. On the Auditor General issue, the A-G is a powerful investigator. AHS’s directive is quite improper, and seems aimed at intimidation of employees to be “careful” about what they divulge to the A-G. This is a direct attack on the A-G’s investigative powers. Section 14 of Alberta’s Auditor General Act states that employees must “give to the Auditor General any information, records or explanations that the Auditor General considers necessary to enable the Auditor General to exercise or perform the Auditor General’s powers and duties under this or any other Act”. This power cannot be restricted by an improper limitation such as “but only if your employer or it’s lawyer says it’s okay.”
Refer also to:
@TLLPST_:
They want to do pre-discovery before discovery to limit the discovery.
@HomelessCalgary:
They’ll drag this out as long as possible short of going to court.
And then at the eleventh hour they’ll settle for an undisclosed amount with a NDA so none will be held accountable.
@SandyCl50522222:
“Mohamed said he needs to cross-examine Mentzelopoulos to “contain the damage” by finding out who else she shared confidential and solicitor-client materials with.”
Bennett Jones’ lawyer told us a whole lot right there. Wow.
@RaisingSqrPegs:
But. Whistle blower legislation protects her. And no matter how they spin this, if the government was contravening legislation in their contract approval, then client privilege isn’t protected.