CBC readers react to Bev Oda's resignation from Parliament

International Co-operation Minister Bev Oda announced that she is quitting her job as a member of Parliament effective July 31(Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)

The CBC Community erupted Tuesday afternoon at the news of International Co-operation Minister Bev Oda's resignation from Parliament.

Oda, who has faced controversy in recent months over her spending habits, said in a message on her website that she informed Prime Minister Stephen Harper of her decision two weeks ago.

The MP for Durham said her last day on the job will be July 31.

The CBC Community left more than 800 comments on the story since it was posted on 12:55 ET. The overwhelming majority of them applauded Oda's departure. While most left short notes, some took it as an opportunity for humour, and in one case, a limerick.

"1 down, 163 to go," wrote Mitavittua, whose comment currently has the highest aggregate rating of more than 1,900.

"When stating, 'I have had the opportunity to witness the hardships of the world's most vulnerable peoples,' she forgot to mention it was from a position of extreme comfort!" - xstevelx

"A great day for Canadians!" - godfather34

"A bad day for taxpayers who have to foot her gold plated pension now that it is 8 years now. Harper should have booted her long ago." - pat wobbly

"A sad day for limo companies and premium orange juice producers." - ThereIsNoGawd

"There once was an MP called Beverly,
Who ripped us all off rather cleverly,
With her black limousine,
And her juice that's obscene,
She'll be hated for now and forever-ly." - TheNationalPist

Several took issue with Oda's pension, which CBC News detailed in accompaniment to the story. The Canadian Taxpayers Federation calculates Oda will receive a pension of $52,183 per year, indexed to inflation, or $701,464 by the time she is 80 years old.

"She makes more from her pension than I do as a teacher (recently retired) who worked in a classroom for 30 years." - Fuseki

"Wow! I am a retired Ontario teacher and we have a great pension plan. After 28 years I qualified for a 50,000-dollar annual pension - for which I am grateful. You're telling me Oda gets over 52,000 dollars annually for just 8 years of (dis) service?! Holy doodle!" - andrew47

"She gets an awesome pension though! 52,000 dollars a year for eight years of "work." I've been in the military for twenty years, I plan on retiring in 10 years which will give me 30 years of service to Canada, not to mention risking life and limb on multiple tours overseas to Bosnia and Afghanistan and I'll barely get that if I'm lucky once my pension is indexed, not to mention the clawbacks from CPP. Ah, the life of an MP!" - NLC123

"Goodbye tension, hello pension!" - Allworld

Other posters speculated that Oda's departure from the government's cabinet could signal an impending appointment to the Senate.

"Do I hear the Senate calling?" - boots22

"Let me take a wild guess ... there's some empty Senate seats which need to be filled?" - eds111

According to CBC's Inside Politics blog, however, The PMO's response notes Oda's departure from Parliament, "thus seemingly squelching, at least for the moment, speculation that her exit from the House of Commons may be due to a pending upgrade to the Upper House."

While clearly in the minority in the CBC Community, some posters expressed either dissatisfaction at Oda's resignation, or defended the controversial stories that had thrust her under the spotlight in the past couple of years.

"She showed some poor judgment but overall, I think she probably did a decent job. The cut to Kairos was absolutely the right decision to make.The media had a witch hunt out for her from the get go, I suppose because she was a former journalist. Sixteen bucks for orange juice isn't uncommon in cities like London or New York. Those of you who continue to complain about it just showcase how inexperienced and parochial you are." - A Priori

"While I can't say I'm sad to see her go...I hope it's because she's just had enough...and not because she's sick or something." - Captainlargefingers

"In my opinion, she made one fatal mistake: being seen smoking a cigarette. The rhetoric around that is absolutely ridiculous." - screwintheworks

"People who criticize would walk a mile in her shoes. Nothing is said of the hours and work she does, just the expensive $16 orange juice." - DonMcMillan

Thank you, as always, for following our coverage. Please feel free to comment on or challenge any of these points and continue the conversation below.