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OTTAWA - (Web posted May 9, 2002 @ 5 p.m.) -
Canadian Alliance leader John Reynolds challenged the Liberals to "root out
the culture of corruption" in their government during Question Period on
Thursday.
 It
was the first opportunity the Opposition had to pounce on the Grits in House of
Commons in the aftermath of the auditor general's investigation into three
federal contracts awarded to Groupaction in the late 1990s.
On Thursday, Auditor General Sheila Fraser
said the manner in which government handled the $1.6 million contracts, which
were awarded to the Monteral-based advertising firm between 1996 and 1999 to
increase Ottawa's visibility in Quebec, was completely unacceptable.
Fraser has referred the matter to the RCMP.
Grant Hill, Alliance House leader, also used
the "culture of corruption" phrase when he challenged Ottawa to launch
a full-scale public inquiry into the contracts.
The contracts were awarded under the watch
of former Public Works Minister Alfonso Gagliano, who was promptly dumped from
cabinet last January amid speculation he interfered in the operations of a Crown
Corporation.
He was subsequently appointed Canada's
ambassador to Denmark.
Bloc Quebecois leader Gilles Duceppe said
it's critical that government bring Gagliano back to Canada so he can answer
questions about his role in the affair.
The NDP and the Tories also called for a
public inquiry.
"Only a public inquiry will give
investigators access to former Ministers, only a public inquiry will give
investigators the power to subpoena the testimony of individuals outside the
public services and examine documents from private companies," said Tory MP
Peter MacKay.
 Boudria
assured the House that "if anyone committed any harm, the people would be brought
to justice."
In one of the more dramatic moments of the
day, Canadian Alliance MP Jason Moore challenged any member of the Liberal
cabinet to apologize to Canadians for mishandling their money.
In the absence of Prime Minister Jean
Chretien and Deputy Prime Minister John Manley, Environment Minister David
Anderson took the floor.
"What we have here is a constant stream
of accusations with no substance," said Anderson unapologetically, as the
Liberal benches erupted in applause.
Read these related stories
 RCMP
will investigate Ottawa's contracts to Groupaction (PoliticsWatch)
Sparring
over AG's
soon-to-be-released report erupts in Ottawa
(PoliticsWatch)
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