Rights & Democracy audit: Still waiting, four months later

Just in case you were wondering, as we were, what ever happened to that audit of Rights and Democracy. According to the Montreal-based human rights organization it is pushing for it to be done and released....soon.

So to recap. The Conservative government appointed a new board chair and members who fought with the "then" president of the agency over grants to groups seen to be critical of Israel. The new chair, Aurel Braun, said at the time that he simply wants to bring "accountability" to the organization. The implication being that there wasn't any under President Rémy Beauregard. Beauregard dies of a heart attack after a particularly stormy board meeting and government appoints an interim president, Jacques Gauthier. Entire staff protests, some are fired, two board members quit.

Despite the controversy, Gauthier and other government-appointees at R & D press ahead, hiring an accounting firm to do a forensic audit. Even though a previous audit/review of the agency by the government itself had found things to be tickety-boo.

That audit, ordered in February, was supposed to have been done within weeks and sent to the foreign affairs committee which had requested it during its hearings into the situation at R & D. In case you hadn't noticed, it is now June.

According to R & D, the reason for the delay is that the scope of the audit has expanded, more than once, at the board's request (as you see in Colleague Kady O'Malley's post, the audit has so far cost the small agency $120,658.55 as of April 1.)

Insiders concerned about the direction of R & D believe what is going on is that the initial process found nothing wrong under Beauregard, and so the board asked to widen the scope in the hopes of finding something, anything, to justify what's happened. But we won't really be able to ascertain that until we see the audit.

R & D says the audit should be wrapped up and sent off sometime between June 18 and the 25th. But committees won't be sitting past the 17th. That's also when the House rises. Again, cynics might say that's perfect timing if you want something to go quietly unnoticed.