Critical to the support of the liberals to Michaëlle Jean

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Michaëlle Jean, secretary general of the OIF

Vincent Larin

Saturday, 17 march 2018 23:35

UPDATE
Saturday, 17 march 2018 23:35

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The opposition is critical of the support of the Trudeau government to the re-election of Michaëlle Jean as the head of the international Organization of la Francophonie, following controversy surrounding his expenses, as revealed among others by our Bureau of investigation.

“We are proud to have a Canadian at the head of a large international organization such as the OIF. [Michaëlle Jean] comes in and takes a stand with courage in the great conflicts that affect the francophonie. This is why our government supports the renewal of [its] mandate “, said Saturday to AFP the canadian minister of international Development and la Francophonie, and Marie-Claude Bibeau.

“If Ms. Jean wants to have the support of the official Opposition, she would have to explain about its spending, that we deem to be irresponsible.” replied the member of parliament for Beauport-Limoilou and spokesperson for the conservative Party for the Francophonie, Alupa Clarke.

This statement of the minister Bibeau occurs at seven months of the summit of the Francophonie in Yerevan, Armenia, where the ex-governor general of Canada briguera a second term as head of the OIF.

Spending lavishly

Over the last few months, our Office of investigation and other media have revealed substantial expenses incurred by Ms. Jean in the framework of its functions to the head of the OIF :

• 500 000 $ have been paid out to renovate his paris apartment.
• 20 000 $ to him have been reimbursed for the purchase of a grand piano in the same apartment.
• A private driver of the OIF is placed at the disposal of the husband of Mrs. Jean, even if the latter has no official function.
• 50 000 $ have been disbursed for her and her entourage during a stay at the luxurious Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York.

Respect for the taxpayers

Like the liberals, the New democratic Party also supports the nomination of Ms. Jean.

The mp for Rosemont La Petite-Patrie, Alexandre Boulerice, however, issued a note of caution Saturday.

“It should be […] to see more transparency and correctness of the part of the organization at the level of its expenditure, it seeks to reassure taxpayers that public funding is well used,” he said.