Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is calling the development process for ArriveCan “corrupt” after the release of a critical report from the Auditor General that faulted government management of the mobile application.
Mr. Poilievre told reporters that the RCMP needs to get to the bottom of the “ArriveScam” scandal which he said “went 750 times over budget.”
“We want the truth to come out and we want the police’s findings to be complete and public, so that Canadians know about all the corruption and mismanagement in the Trudeau government,” he told reporters Feb. 12 in Ottawa.
The report also criticized the agencies for failing to adhere to basic management and contracting norms during the app’s development and implementation.
At the Feb. 12 press conference, Mr. Poilievre was challenged by reporters on his characterization of ArriveCan as “corrupt,” since nothing to that effect was raised in Ms. Hogan’s report. It was her explicit aim not to interfere with ongoing CBSA and RCMP investigations into the app.
Opposition Concerns
Other opposition parties also raised concerns with the AG’s report as Ms. Hogan appeared before the House of Commons public accounts committee on Feb. 12.“Is it customary practice that the contractor tells an agency what to do?” asked Bloc Québécois MP Julie Vignola.
Ms. Hogan’s response touched on the role of GC Strategies in the affair, the general contractor hired to create the app.
“No, our observation is that GC Strategies was involved in setting the requirements of a competitive contract,” Ms. Hogan responded, “and this, in my opinion should not have happened.”
Ms. Hogan said the CBSA favoured a potential supplier by giving them an advantage. Only GC Strategies truly satisfied the criteria, she said, which were excessively restrictive and, in her view, hindered competition.
At the same meeting, NDP MP Blake Desjarlais raised a similar concern, calling it a “deeply troubling fact.”
“We need to reflect on the ability of private actors to directly influence the competition of a bid that they are participating in,” he said.
Investigations
Ms. Hogan’s report follows extensive investigations by the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates (OGGO) into the development costs of the app. The committee has raised concerns about the CBSA’s procurement practices.The CBSA says that some recommendations from the report have already been implemented, with the CBSA committed to further actions to align management practices with policies and ensure public confidence.
These new CBSA measures include: first, the creation of an Executive Procurement Review Committee for additional oversight; second, requiring employees to disclose interactions with potential vendors; and third, enhancing the procurement group’s capacity to oversee activities and establish a centre of expertise for better understanding of obligations and authorities.