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B.C. Rail deal comes back to haunt Libs: Tieleman

Let's make one thing clear -- the B.C. Legislature raid case, the $1 billion privatization of B.C. Rail in 2003, the corruption charges against three former B.C. Liberal government aides -- those are now secondary. A far more important issue is at stake -- the integrity of the premier of British Columbia, Gordon Campbell. For those who have either failed to cover or follow the charges against David Basi, Bob Virk or Aneal Basi, saying it's too complicated, too long ago, too trivial or just so what -- none of that matters any more.

Campbell must answer questions about his personal role and his government's actions in selling B.C. Rail to CN Rail for $1 billion in a purportedly open bidding process. The premier's closest political advisor, Patrick Kinsella -- co-chair of both the 2001 and 2005 B.C. Liberal Party election campaigns -- is alleged in a court of law to have been working for both B.C. Rail and CN at the same time.

Those allegations by defence lawyers, repeated in the B.C. Legislature by New Democratic Party MLAs, must be answered. We already know that Kinsella was paid $297,000 by B.C. Rail in $6,000-a-month instalments from 2001 to 2005. And Kinsella, as a private consultant, can work for both parties in a transaction -- there's nothing illegal in that. But Campbell, the premier of the province, has an obligation to tell taxpayers if these allegations are true or false -- before the May 12 election. Campbell has an even greater obligation to respond to defence allegations in court -- based on information from lobbyists for another bidder who are now key crown witnesses -- that the premier personally met with Kinsella and David McLean, the chair of CN Rail, before the deal was announced.

"There's a sinister way of looking at this -- that the government was playing politics with this deal the whole time."

Defence lawyer Kevin McCullough on the B.C. Rail sale

True or false? If true, why did the meeting take place? Was the B.C. Rail deal discussed? Did Campbell know that Kinsella was working for B.C. Rail or what he was doing for them? Was Kinsella there on behalf of B.C. Rail or CN or both?

Did Campbell know who Kinsella was representing when he called the premier's chief of staff Martyn Brown on May 19, 2004 to try and save the billion dollar deal with CN from collapsing? Was it B.C. Rail or CN or both? Not only is Campbell's excuse that he can't comment on a matter "before the courts" convenient -- it's fundamentally wrong. Campbell has commented before when it suited his purposes.

This time it's more important -- it's not the Basi-Virk case that is in jeopardy -- it's Gordon Campbell's personal integrity.

Bill Tieleman writes for 24 Hours Vancouver.

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