The Honourable Mike Duffy
Senate of Canada
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A4
Dear Senator Duffy,
Hardly a month after your appointment, John Fewings, in his cartoon of yourself as the poster boy for the abolition of the Canadian Senate, won’t be able to foresee how right he was at that time. While I agreed with his message then, I thought he was too harsh, and even reckless, in using you to justify in bringing down what to a common Canadian, a useless, very high maintenance ‘sober second thought upper chamber.’
I used to watch and admire you as the host of the Sunday Edition of Ontario Network Television Sunday morning news. I thought you were a hard-hitting, top-notch TV political reporter and as an inductee to the Canadian Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame, you deserved the senate appointment, despite of my abhorrence to the institution itself.
You see, I’m one of those who believe that if the Canadian Senate chamber can’t be closed forever due to some constitutional amendments, the senators should be elected. This Upper Chamber is unnecessary because I never heard of any bills passed by the House of Commons that were rejected by the appointed members of the Senate. Thus, this Senate Chamber is just a big and hungry rubber-stamp that Canadians can do without. This is particularly true now that both Houses are controlled by the Conservatives.
Anyway, just for the record, I’m not a Liberal either and I voted Conservative during the last few Federal and Provincial elections.
And now, to the real meat of this letter.
The bold, black title of the article, “Duffy accused of ‘falsifying facts’” caught my attention (Toronto Star Page 4, February 6, 2013). The allegation pointed that from November 30, 2010 to November 30, 2012, you claimed about $42,802 in living expenses that include accommodation, meals and other incidental expenses, since ‘your primary residence is in Cavendish, P.E.I.’
At a first glance, it appeared that you were justified; Cavendish is more than 1330 kilometres away from Ottawa, way over the 100 kilometers requirement for one to claim for living expenses.
However, the picture of your supposedly house in Cavendish, PEI tells a different story. It shows that house, which looks like a cheap cottage to me, had not been visited in ages. In fact, looking at the streets, the snow had not been plowed ever and that according to the reports, your neighbours have long left the place for the winter.
When asked about the allegation, your reply was, “I represent taxpayers with care, and Canadians know I would never do anything to betray the public trust. I have a home in Prince Edward Island as required by law.”
You are very wrong, Mr. Senator! The Constitution Act requires that Senators must reside in the provinces or territories for which they are appointed. Meanwhile, you know full well that you and your family lived in Kanata, Ontario. In short, it is not enough that you own a properly in PEI; you have to live there, too.
And how can I say that?
Your wife, Heather, is a nurse and works at Ottawa’s Civic Hospital while your son, Gavin, is a student at Algonquin College, Ottawa. It appears that since you moved to Montreal in 1969, you never left the place. To me, your Kanata home is where you live comfortably and permanently while your Cavendish cottage is where you use to circumvent the law and betray the Canadian trust.
And you are not representing your constituent with care. Firstly, despite of your huge salaries, benefits and expense claims, you did not care to properly maintain your cottage in Cavendish.
Unless you are a ghost that can get in and out of the house without leaving any marks or footsteps, I would say you have never been in your legal residence in ages.
And of course, you don’t have a PEI health card. Why would you- you live in Ottawa!
However, to cover up for your cheating ways, you tried to muscle PEI Health Minister Doug Currie to issue you a health card even if you knew you won’t need it for physical examination. Your Ontario card is more than enough. Actually, since you are a Senator, maybe you don’t even have to show anything.
And you know, Senator, there is an old adage: If one looks like a duck and walks like a duck, it is a duck. To me, you are a duck!
Anyway, why bother- you are an appointed member of the Senate and unless you pissed of the Prime Minister, you will have a job until 2021 and a guaranteed Senate pension for life.
However, what do I fear most?
Since Canadians don’t have the power to boot you out through election, I have the same belief with that of NDP MP Charlie Angus of Timmins-James Bay, that Senate’s ‘Old Boys Club’ won’t police its own members and that you can continue sticking your hands in Canadian cookie jar.
In fact, how the money for your living expenses and that of the others like, Patrick Brazeau, Mark Harb and even Pamela Wallin was paid was beyond me. It looks like there are no sufficient financial controls in the Senate, too.
But if you have a conscience, you should return the DIRTY money you falsely claimed, resign your Senate seat and go back to being a broadcaster where you excelled.
Gerry Villareal
Mississauga, Ontario