The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) applauded the City of Winnipeg today for its victory in court against its former CAO, Phil Sheegl. During the former CAO’s tenure, the CTF drew attention to a number of questionable decisions by the city’s administration and successfully convinced council to take action.

“The City of Winnipeg deserves credit for taking its former CAO to court,” said CTF President Scott Hennig. “When someone commits fraud against the government, the government should go after them. If governments don’t, they’re basically telling the world that they’re an easy target.”

Some of the CTF’s advocacy efforts during the Phil Sheegl era include:

• After a council motion to audit the Winnipeg Police Headquarters construction project failed 9-7, the CTF reached out to the Winnipeg Labour Council to suggest working together to push council to approve a second motion to audit the project. The two groups held a joint press conference and urged the public to call their councillors. A motion to audit the project was subsequently approved 14-1. The audit would later prove to include a number of damning conclusions.
• The CTF connected the Winnipeg Police Service and RCMP with two whistleblowers. While the Winnipeg Police Service never contacted the second whistleblower, the RCMP took the concerns seriously, conducted a thorough investigation.
• The CTF drew council’s attention to improperly tendered contracts for “due diligence” work on the police headquarters project and “property maintenance” at the building attached to it. Council subsequently canceled the latter.
• After hearing that city officials had concerns with building a firehall in the middle of a traffic cloverleaf, the CTF campaigned for the city to release the report. City hall refused. However, after the city’s new mayor was sworn in, the CTF again requested the document. The mayor later released the document and it showed the fire hall was indeed built in a location that officials felt was unsafe.

“Commendation needs to go to our former Prairie Director Colin Craig,” continued Hennig. “Without him digging into these irregularities, many of these seedy interactions would never have come to light. This court victory is a victory for taxpayer, but also for every whistleblower out there.”

The CTF looks forward to hearing the results of the city’s second lawsuit regarding the construction of the Winnipeg Police headquarters project.