As Ontario’s Training Minister considers eliminating choose college board trustee positions throughout the province, the federal government is zeroing in on the bills of 1 elected official as a broader signal of college board dysfunction.
Shortly after the Ford authorities took over the Toronto Catholic District College board, the provincial supervisor delved into seven years’ value of bills of board chair Markus de Domenico, in search of potential discrepancies.
What the supervisor discovered – roughly $90,000 in bills over the seven-year interval – has been supplied by the federal government, has an instance of why trustees require further scrutiny by Queen’s Park.
“It’s symptomatic of a bigger drawback within the system, that any greenback that’s spent exterior of the category is a greenback not going to assist a pupil obtain,” Calandra advised International Information. “A few of the issues that we discovered have been clearly massively shocking.”
Examples embrace the $15 spent on a milkshake, the acquisition of 5 TV wallmounts and a fee of $145 for an Apple watch band.
Calandra, whose workplace requested for the interview to be carried out in de Dominico’s workplace on the TCDSB headquarters at Yonge and Sheppard, additionally pointed to the 5 tv wall mounts and questioned the place they went.
“I imply, you’re in his workplace, do you see 5 TVs hanging on the partitions right here? No, so what do you want 5 TV wall quantities?” Calandra stated. “You don’t get in it to get wealthy, 100%, however you don’t get in and to additionally offset your way of life both.”
Calandra issued a letter to de Dominico with an itemized checklist of 61 gadgets asking him to return $6,700 value of things “bought with taxpayers’ {dollars}.”
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“Any of the assets that you just used as a trustee in supervised boards, we wish that again,” Calandra stated. “Whether or not it’s iPads, chargers, telephones, that ought to all be returned to us.”
For his half, de Dominico advised International Information that “all bills are vetted by employees” and urged the federal government is intentionally concentrating on him.
“The ministry continues to personally assault me to be able to silence me from doing what I’ve all the time carried out; talking out for college kids, households, and our most susceptible particular schooling children who’ve been so poorly served by the ministry,” de Dominico advised International Information
Whereas the ministry now appears to be like at probably curbing the obligations of some trustees and eliminating different positions totally, Calandra wouldn’t say how a lot the province may save because of this.
“I’m not seeking to save something. I’m seeking to redirect,” the minister stated. “If it is a part-time job, which it’s imagined to be, then it must be handled as a component time job with a really targeted mission and mandate.”
Calandra, in the meantime, is going through equal criticism over his personal bills a member of cupboard and provincial parliament.
A information launch issued by the Toronto and York Area Labour Council on Thursday, quoting trustees, went after Calandra’s bills, accusing him of hypocrisy.
“Minister Paul Calandra probably receives $40,000 a yr for a constituency workplace and is expensing tens of hundreds to taxpayers for meals, accommodations and occasions,” Rizzo stated in an announcement.
“My fellow trustees and I don’t have a constituency workplace — it’s the native Tim Horton’s. The price of our workplaces is a espresso or a milkshake for a constituent. It’s unbelievably hypocritical to name $15 expense questionable when the Minister is spending hundreds on strawberry pancakes and BBQs.”
The minister’s workplace stated it was “laughable” to match the bills of part-time college board trustees to these of a minister, stating the pancake occasions and BBQs have been free for anybody within the driving to attend and are designed to attach with residents.
The expense for a “Strawberry Pageant Pancake Breakfast” refers to an occasion hosted by Calandra, the native mayor and two members of parliament, his workplace stated.
The funds MPPs are allowed to assert are strictly ruled and customarily relate to lodging close to Queen’s Park throughout debates, internet hosting occasions to attach with constituents or journey to and from the legislature.
Final yr, Calandra tallied $54,142 in workplace lease, in accordance with employees and workplace expense disclosures.
