TINKERING AND SPREADING THE BLAME: HOW THE FIRST GOMERY REPORT LET PLUS QUEBECERS DOWN O P S Alain-G. Gagnon and Raffaele Iacovino T IO N To most Canadians, the sponsorship scandal was about greed and abuse of power. To Quebecers, the impact of the scandal and the commission that showcased it was much more nuanced. As Alain-G.Gagnon and Raffaele Iacovino of the Université du Québec à Montréal write, “The Gomery Commission has done little to reconcile the fundamental flaws in Ottawa’s approach to its relations with Quebec.” If the sponsorship scandal was a window on the belief “that the discontents of Quebecers were so superficial as to be treatable through the infantile blandishments of commercial advertising’s flashy colours and creative slogans,” they write, then it will take more than Gomery to repair the damage. Pour la plupart des Canadiens, le scandale des commandites est synonyme d’appât du gain et d’abus de pouvoir. Mais ses répercussions et la commission qui les a révélées suscitent chez les Québécois un avis beaucoup plus partagé. « La commission Gomery n’a guère comblé les lacunes fondamentales de l’approche appliquée par Ottawa dans ses relations avec le Québec », notent Alain-G.Gagnon et Raffaele Iacovino, de l’Université du Québec à Montréal. Si ce scandale a révélé que, pour certains, « le mécontentement des Québécois était si superficiel qu’il suffisait pour le calmer des puériles flatteries d’une campagne publicitaire aux couleurs vives et aux slogans choc », écrivent les auteurs, il faudra plus qu’un juge Gomery pour réparer les dégâts. rom 1994 to 2003, the federal government spent over this is simply “the way politics has always been done in $330 million on sponsorships and special events Quebec,” consider that the anger such corruption provokes F aimed at increasing Ottawa’s visibility in Quebec. in Quebecers is compounded many times over by the offen- Following Auditor-General Sheila Fraser’s scathing report of sive assumption that close to 150 years of effort to find a fraud and patronage in the program, Quebec Superior Court just and acceptable relationship between Quebec and Justice John Gomery was appointed by Paul Martin to head Canada was interpreted as little more than a problem in an independent inquiry in February 2004. The first of two terms of the “exposure” to Canadian symbols — that reports of the Gomery Commission was released on Canada as a “brand” was somehow not seeping into November 1, 2005. The second, initially due in mid- Quebec’s collective consciousness. In short, that the discon- December, has been delayed until February 1, 2006. tents of Quebecers were so superficial as to be treatable The sponsorship program was defended by Jean through the infantile blandishments of commercial adver- Chrétien as a key element in the pursuit of national unity. tising’s flashy colours and creative slogans. This approach reduced to a secretive and publicly funded This is a profound development that has not received advertising campaign what was for Quebec a very profound sufficient scrutiny. The program itself, notwithstanding existential issue involving its status as a nation, its collective the corruption, continues to be defended by Chrétien as a identity and societal projects, its very place in the world necessary element of national unity. Reducing an essen- and, broadly, many years of debate and deliberation about tially political question to a marketing campaign, howev- the fundamentals of its relationship with the rest of Canada. er, explicitly undermines democracy and sidesteps the role For those who blame Quebec for this fiasco, or believe that of representation in securing the legitimacy of political 88 OPTIONS POLITIQUES DÉCEMBRE 2005 - JANVIER 2006 Tinkering and spreading the blame: how the first Gomery report let Quebecers down outcomes. Politics as marketing con- irresponsible approach to the politics than what was initially brought to stitutes a dangerous precedent for the of federalism. Those include the Clarity light in the auditor-general’s study. It future of this country — employing Act, national standards in the provision simply confirms some of the findings public policy with the explicit aim of of social programs (with or without made by Sheila Fraser, even though the likening democratic citizenship to the Quebec’s consent), and a domineering commission had the means to go fur- consumption of governmental “prod- attitude toward use of the federal ther, knowing full well by then where ucts.” This approach is even more spending power in areas of exclusive to search for additional information. scandalous than the usual nation- provincial jurisdiction, all the while We interpret the scandal as an act building efforts of the central govern- refusing to acknowledge the existence of political agency: as an explicit ment that are undertaken to Quebec’s of a fiscal imbalance in Canada, even as attempt by the Government of dismay. At least those efforts repre- federal surpluses continue to mount. Canada to illegitimately — the ques- tion of its legality will sub- From the perspective of Quebec, both the logic of the sequently be determined program and the process put in place to rectify its deficiencies by the courts — address reveal the illegitimacy of the federal government’s actions vis- the “problem” of Quebec. The Gomery Commission à-vis Quebec. Indeed, the Gomery Commission has done little seems to be proceeding as to reconcile the fundamental flaws in Ottawa’s approach to its an enterprise whose man- relations with Quebec. date is to correct systemic flaws in the machinery of sent a liberal democratic vision, can In terms of process, the establish- government, as though this is but be legitimated in the abstract, and ment of the Gomery Commission is another area of public policy where claim to empower individuals from admirable, since political corruption some tinkering can somehow increase coast to coast. While Quebec does not should rightly preoccupy all administrative efficiency and trans- share this vision of political commu- Canadians. It is not surprising that parency. As such, it dovetails nicely nity in Canada, at least dialogue recent polls show that a solid majority with the current federal government’s remains an option. With politics as of citizens, including Quebecers, are party line that this was the result of a advertising, individuals are the pleased with the Liberal government’s small group of rogue bureaucrats and objects of explicit, condescending efforts at addressing the flaws in the their private sector clients who treatment, expected to soak up mes- machinery of government that led to exploited loopholes in accountability sages as though they have no stand- the scandal in the first place. The hear- procedures and filled their pockets. ing as political agents — as citizens. ings of the Gomery Commission have The limited mandate of the Gomery been public and have received much Commission does very little to rom the perspective of Quebec, media attention. The reputations of address some of the larger questions F both the logic of the program and various Canadian institutions of and more profound problems that the process put in place to rectify its almost iconic standing in the country, have emerged from the uncovering of deficiencies reveal the illegitimacy of such as Via Rail, Canada Post, the the scandal. the federal government’s actions vis-à- RCMP, and the Business Development vis Quebec. Indeed, the Gomery Bank, have been sullied. In this regard, oreover, the report lays the Commission has done little to recon- the Gomery Commission will at the M blame on the inner circle of cile the fundamental flaws in Ottawa’s very least make Canadians more aware Jean Chrétien, including pivotal fig- approach to its relations with Quebec. and vigilant about political corruption ures such as Alfonso Gagliano and In terms of substance, the pro- and patronage, and will perhaps Jean Pelletier, essentially absolving gram’s aims were put in place in lieu of restrain such developments in the key members of Paul Martin’s genuine dialogue with Quebec. future. entourage, even though the present Following the failed constitutional prime minister sat at the cabinet table rounds of the early 1990s and the close owever, there also is a general when the decision to launch the pro- referendum result in 1995, the best H malaise with regards to the gram, establishing a $50 million fund that the Liberal government of Jean Gomery Commission, especially from for national unity was taken in 1996. Chrétien could come up with was to the perspective of Quebec. This is relat- He was also vice-president of the stifle any constructive attempts to rec- ed specifically to the feeling that the Treasury Board for most of its imple- oncile relations with Quebec. The commission seems to represent an mentation, as well as a high-ranking sponsorship program thus manifests extension of the political “spin” com- member of the Quebec caucus. It itself as but another feature of a grow- ing out of the Prime Minister’s Office. seems unlikely that he wasn’t aware of ing list of cynical actions as well as an Indeed, the report does not go further the irregularities in the implementa- POLICY OPTIONS 89 DECEMBER 2005 - JANUARY 2006 Alain-G. Gagnon and Raffaele Iacovino tion of the program, particularly in the report managed to demonstrate a promotion of national unity — or as terms of channels of accountability. lack of substantive evidence yet chose Paul Martin constantly reminded us The involvement of communica- to exonerate Paul Martin and current during the last election campaign — tions agencies associated with Paul cabinet ministers entirely, while the bearer of Canadian values. This Martin, such as BCP and Claude specifically singling out members of underlying arrogance no doubt con- Boulay’s Groupe Everest, have been the previous Liberal government as tributed to the implementation of the downplayed by the report.