Feature: Released - August 07, 2012 11:00 AM EDT
Tag #: 568
Director, Human Resources and Organizational Development of City of Greater Sudbury claimed expenses from tax dollars of $8,232.46  in addition to his salary and benefits at the end of 2011. 

The same Director was also awarded with over $120,000.00 annual salary and he swallowed another $7,500.00 as benefits. His total package cost the taxpayers annually over $127,500.00

According to the public sector salary disclosure, in 2010 he drew $123,000.20 as salary and another $7,503.73 as benefits totalling $130,735.93. In 2011, he drew $131,978.91 as a salary and another $ 7,688.52 as benefits totalling $139,667.43.

A Freedom of Information request was filed to access details of expense account of five employees in Water and Wastewater Division and Human Resources and Organizational Development Division. The City of Greater Sudbury’s Clerk Services identified over 550 responsive records related to the original request. But the City clerk's office refused to provide details quoting various sections of the Municipal Freedom of Information and Privacy Protection Act (MFIPPA). Following this, to access the expense account of the director or human resources and organization of development, a legal battle started. This matter appealed to Information and Privacy Commissioner Ontario. Finally the matter was settled with mediation and its mediator ordered the City to release the information. 

Controversial Expense Account
The director’s package did not stop at this point. He claimed in 2010, $3,541.33 and in 2011 another $ 4,691.13 as his expenses from taxpayers. His total claim reached $ 8,232.46 at the end of 2011.

We have only total amounts.  We have no detail on how tax dollars were spent. WikiLeaks Sudbury is demanding public inquiry for the expense account belonging to the Director of Human Resources and Organizational Development.

Recently, minister Bev Oda, of the International Co-operation's decision to leave her office appeared to have been influenced by the bad press surrounding her spending habits. She sparked a controversy last summer over her travel expenses claiming they were for a spring trip to London (UK).  Oda felt compelled to pay back taxpayers some of the expenses for this trip once details such as  the glass of Orange juice which cost  $16, were revealed to the public.

The Public Sector Salary Disclosure Act, 1996 makes Ontario's public sector more open and accountable to taxpayers. The act requires organizations that receive public funding from the Province of Ontario to disclose annually the names, positions, salaries and total taxable benefits of employees paid $100,000 or more in a calendar year.

Kevin Fowke – Director, Human Resources and Organizational Development.

This disclosure is in addition to his expense account.
Disclosure 2010 – Salary $123,232.20, Benefits: $7,503.73 = Total: $ 130,735.93
Disclosure 2011 – Salary $131,978.91, Benefits: $7,688.52 = Total: $ 139,667.43
Annual Increase: 6.81%

Related documents:
1-1 City's Clerk office refused to access expense account
1-2 City's Clerk Office provided revised decision and denied access to expense accounts
1-3 City's Clerk Office Released of Expense account
1-4 Acknowledgement of Appeal to Information and Privacy Commissioner Ontario
1-5 Mediator’s Report of Information and Privacy Commissioner Ontario
1-6 Legal arguments and representation  

Released August 31, 2012

Editorial:

Cause for optimism in battling corruption: Corrupt, repressive and stupid

No representative government in a democracy can deny citizens their fundamental right to dissent and to protest peacefully. Insisting on unreasonable, inequitable and suspiciously contrived conditions that everyone knows of, the protesters cannot accept this tantamount to denial of the democratic right. Instead of honestly dealing with the issues raised by successive scandals, the City of Greater Sudbury administrators chose to cover them up. When that became unsustainable, it resorted to slurs and dirty tricks, and incrementally raised the level of repression to smother voices demanding accountability and corrective institutional measures. It is no wonder that from time to time the City administrators get into panic mode by terminating employees, miscalculating and committing acts that everyone outside the regime recognizes as administratively stupid.

 If the administrators of the City of Greater Sudbury  do not recognize the public's anger against mismanagement, respect the ideals and values of democracy, and take steps to create a confidence into their actions, there will be a political price to pay. 

A large amount of tax dollars is misspent and no accountability & transparency is established. Very few actions were taken to minimize or address the issue. The city administrators continually abuse power against employees and people of Sudbury to cover their own incompetence and inefficiency. WikiLeaks Sudbury will take the very ambitious, risky and costly task to expose these bankrupt officials. Our struggle is not only to expose those officials but also propose institutional changes for the benefit for all citizens in the City of Greater Sudbury.

WikiLeaks Sudbury will continually add pressure on its officials to promote accountable and transparent municipal governance guided by the following principles:

[1]   Decision-making will be open and transparent. 

[2]   Municipal operations will be conducted in an ethical and accountable manner.

[3]   Financial resources and physical infrastructure will be managed in an efficient and effective manner.

[4]   Municipal information will be accessible so that it is consistent with legislative requirements.

[5]   Inquiries, concerns and complaints will be responded to in a timely manner.

[6]   Financial oversight, service standards, performance reporting and all other accountability documents will be made available and accessible in language that the public can understand, to increase the opportunity for public scrutiny and involvement in municipal operations.

[7]   Every new delegation of power or authority will have a corresponding accountability mechanism.

WikiLeaks Sudbury will make city officials accountable and transparent to taxpayers by fulfilling various legislated responsibilities and disclosure of information. The following are provincial statutes that govern how the city conducts its business in a public, accountable and transparent manner:

[1]   Municipal Act, 2001

[2]   Municipal Conflict of Interest Act

[3]   Provincial Offences Act

[4]   Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act

[5]   Health Information Protection Act

[6]   Public Sector Salary Disclosure Act

Financial accountability, oversight and reporting are important key factors WikiLeaks Sudbury believes in and focuses on to establish good governance. The City of Greater Sudbury officials should be accountable and transparent to taxpayers by identifying the source of the city funds and how those funds are used to deliver services. WikiLeaks Sudbury continually pressures city administrators to focus on the following policies, procedures and practices that demand to demonstrate the City of Greater Sudbury’s best-practice financial accountability, oversight and reporting mechanisms such as: 

[1]   External Auditor and their report

[2]   Auditor General’s Office and Annual Report

[3]   Annual and Quarterly Financial Statements

[4]   Long Range Financial Plan

[5]   Capital Status Reports

[6]   Delegation of Authority By-law and Reports

[7]   Purchasing By-law and Reports

[8]   Human Resources Plan

WikiLeaks Sudbury continually engages exposing mismanagement used as a tool in developing internal accountability and ethical standards of municipal government. As an external monitoring body or watch dog, WikiLeaks Sudbury exposes all unethical practices of the city administrators and continually applies pressure on developing: 

[1]   Hiring and Employment of Family Members Policy

[2]   Workplace Harassment Policy

[3]   Human Rights

Section 270 of the Municipal Act, 2001 as amended by Bill 130 requires the City of Greater Sudbury to adopt and maintain a policy with respect to ensuring accountability and transparency. This matrix identifies the legislation, policies, procedures and practices that the City of Greater Sudbury should comply with in order to promote accountability and transparency.

These actions are extremely necessary, even more so now as our City is facing various scandals involved by its officials. Finally our aims are to establish accountability and transparency while exposing actions of city administrators including senior mangers and supervisors.

Editor

WikiLeaks Sudbury

August 31, 2012

Related Documents:

Citizen Attitudes toward Transparency in Local Government