PM should ask Oda to resign over document: Ignatieff

The case against Bev Oda, the Minister of International Cooperation, is unusually straightforward given the opacity that often surrounds political controversies in Ottawa. While testifying before a House of Commons committee in December, Ms. Oda said she had no idea who had altered a document so that it denied funding to the faith-based social service group, KAIROS. On Monday, she admitted the change had been made at her request.

Unless she can explain that discrepancy, which she has failed to do so far, the only logical conclusion is that she lied to MPs at her first appearance.

Once again, the Harper government appears most vulnerable to problems of its own making. As with last summer�s census gambit, Ms. Oda�s apparent indiscretion represents a self-inflicted political wound.

At her appearance in December, she was questioned about a decision to refuse funding to KAIROS, which had received funds for 35 years but recently has been under fire for its anti-Israel positions. Although the document sent to Ms. Oda for signing appeared to recommend approval of more than $7-million for the organization, it was altered by the insertion of the word �not� at a crucial spot, reversing the apparent recommendation of the officials who had sent it.
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Of course, denying a grant application to a group such as KAIROS, in itself, hardly comprises a scandal. Ms. Oda said the group had been cut off because its work no longer fit with the Canadian International Development Agency�s objectives � which is Cabinet�s determination to make. We elect our politicians to make decisions, not simply to accept bureaucrats� advice. If the Prime Minister, Cabinet, or Ms. Oda believe that taxpayers should stop funding a particular group, they have every right to make that happen � notwithstanding the contrary opinions of unelected subordinates.

And certainly, there were legitimate reasons to deny KAIROS� funding request. The group was acting against the interests of one of Canada�s most important allies, Israel, and by extension, undermining the policies of the very government from which it wanted money. Notably, it supported an organization that called for a �buycott� of Israeli goods, under the guise of �Morally Responsible Investment.� While KAIROS is perfectly free to engage in such activities, it does not follow that Canadian taxpayers must foot the bill.

However, altering the document after it had been signed by others served to falsely imply that the other signatories � both of whom were CIDA officials � supported Ms. Oda�s decision. This might have been avoided if Ms. Oda had explained in December that she had decided to override her officials and deny the application. Instead, she originally claimed she did not know who had inserted the offending word � an apparent ruse seemingly designed to achieve the desired result without going through proper channels.

Ms. Oda�s obfuscation has fuelled speculation that KAIROS� grant application was quashed on the orders of a higher power, namely, the Prime Minister�s Office. On Tuesday, Liberal Foreign Affairs Critic Bob Rae charged: �We have to deal with the fact that minister Oda could not have made this decision by herself, she could not have done what she did without instructions from the prime minister�s office and for all we know, from the prime minister himself.�

What seems more likely is that the PMO instructed Ms. Oda�s office that she should deny KAIROS� funding request, and that Ms. Oda responded to this (legitimate) instruction in a ham-fisted way. In any event, Ms. Oda�s ministerial reputation is permanently compromised.

For now, Mr. Harper is sticking by Ms. Oda: He has responded to the controversy by airily declaring �It is the minister�s responsibility to ensure that humanitarian aid objectives are met with the efficient use of taxpayer�s dollars.� But she has another responsibility, too: to act ethically and tell the truth. Her failure in this regard means she is no longer fit for Cabinet.

Ms. Oda�s obfuscation has fuelled speculation that KAIROS� grant application was quashed on the orders of a higher power, namely, the Prime Minister�s Office. On Tuesday, Liberal Foreign Affairs Critic Bob Rae charged: �We have to deal with the fact that minister Oda could not have made this decision by herself, she could not have done what she did without instructions from the prime minister�s office and for all we know, from the prime minister himself.�

"redhatmamma" said
She's a patsy for Harper - really.

"redhatmamma" said
I kinda don't like the idea of him giving in to the opposition demands.

Keep in mind that as a Minister Oda has the power to decline or approve a funding recommendation from her department - she declined. This does not give them a case against Oda, but the CPC needs to be clearer on that. Maybe a simple stamp saying 'declined' would have been more appropriate.

"redhatmamma" said
She's a patsy for Harper - really. Are you saying women shouldn't take responsibility for their own actions? Your comments and others are simply speculation and innuendo.

She's been a good minister and MP, but if it is established that she misled Parliament, then yes, she should resign, it was her choice to do what she did, other than that the only thing she did wrong was not initialing the change. The opposition is on the hunt, baying at the moon, they don't care about Parliament or integity, heck, the Liberals are the last ones to talk about that one. All they care about is scoring brownie points towards a coming election.

Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said Wednesday that Oda has apologized. When pressed by The Canadian Press on whether that was enough after misleading the House of Commons, Kenney shot back: ``The CBC lies all the time. What media are you with?''