Ottawa, ON – Andrew Scheer, Conservative House Leader, released the following statement on GC Strategies’ failure to appear before a House of Commons Committee on their role in the ArriveScam scandal:
“Today, Conservatives on the Government Operations Committee will move a motion to compel GC Strategies to testify over their involvement in Trudeau’s $60 million ArriveScam app. Similar to the subpoena power courts have, House of Commons committees have the ability to take measures to ensure that individuals can’t refuse requests to testify. If GC Strategies defies this parliamentary order, the Sergeant-at-Arms would be instructed to arrest the owners of GC Strategies and haul them before committee. This drastic measure is rarely used but is necessary given the abuse of taxpayer money and corruption displayed in Trudeau’s ArriveScam.
“GC Strategies has already defied one legal summons on December 5, 2023. The committee issued a new summons to appear by February 9, 2024, and again GC Strategies refused to testify before committee. As GC Strategies has disregarded multiple legal summonses issued by committee, they now must face the full force of Parliament’s constitutional powers and authorities.
“GC Strategies is a two-person IT firm that does no actual IT work, operating out of a house in Ottawa. The Auditor General (AG) found that GC Strategies received nearly $20 million dollars on the ArriveScam app, acting as an IT middleman. We know that GC Strategies has received nearly $60 million in contracts from the Trudeau Government since 2017 and potentially much more. The government’s own website shows hundreds of contracts listed.
“The RCMP is investigating contracting links to ArriveScam, and the Auditor General has met with the Mounties concerning findings in her ArriveCan audit. The Auditor General’s ArriveScam report shows a concerted effort to cover up the paper trail and records. Senior government officials have been accused of destroying ArriveScam documents. Canada’s procurement watchdog found that 76% of ArriveScam subcontractors did not perform any work. This stinks of the corruption Canadians are all too familiar with seeing from this Liberal government and clearly warrants a full RCMP investigation.
“Today’s motion is a crucial step in getting GC Strategies to testify before the ArriveScam committee investigation. This firm was formed in 2015 and began receiving government contracts just weeks after Trudeau was elected. Taxpayers deserve answers on why an app that was supposed to cost $80k ended up wasting $60 million. GC Strategies can choose to cooperate and testify before committee willingly or face being hauled there forcibly.”