QUEBEC – Three companies in the Axor construction group plead guilty and were fined $87,907 for making illegal corporate donations to political parties, contrary to Quebec’s party financing law.
In Quebec, only provincial voters may contribute to party coffers and the maximum gift is $3,000.
But for the past year, the government of Premier Jean Charest has been dogged by demands for a public inquiry into the construction industry and allegations of illegal financing by construction companies.
Former Liberal justice minister Marc Bellemare is to testify before an investigator for the chief electoral officer on Aug. 20 about his allegations that when he was a minister he witnessed illegal donations by cash and cheque to the Liberal party
Quebec’s chief electoral officer Marcel Blanchet pressed the charges after he was alerted by Amir Khadir, the sole elected member of the Québec solidaire in the National Assembly.
Khadir identified 111 managers and employees of four firms involved in construction in the province, who gave a total of almost $300,000 to the Quebec Liberal Party in 2008.
Among Axor employees giving the maximum $3,000 donation was Bianca Chevrette, an Axor Group Inc. receptionist. Khadir questioned whether an employee in that salary bracket had the means to give $3,000.
Employees of the other three firms – SNC-Lavalin Inc., BPR and Cima+ – all told the chief electoral officer their donations came from their own pockets and they were not reimbursed by their employers.
But in the case of Axor, the employees did not make that affirmation and Blanchet pressed charges.
Axor illegally gave $113,500 to the Quebec Liberals, $34,000 to the Parti Québécois and $5,000 to Action démocratique du Québec.
The three parties must repay the illegal donations to the chief electoral officer.
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