Todd Langlois Affair Solution

By Ed Arditti

Of course, leave it to the Blogmeister to work out a solution that makes everybody happy and solves all of the problems.

The more this AG fiasco goes on, the more that is disclosed to the public, the more likely it is that the City will have to cave in and pay Todd Langlois money to get out of this fiasco. Or rather taxpayers will have to foot the bill because City officials don’t have to pay money out of their pocketbooks even if they screw up…

Would Mr. Langlois be happy? I don’t think so. I think that he would rather work than get some cash in his hand. Like it or not that money will go quickly unless he can get a job offer. I’m not sure how many there are around considering that he was prepared to wait quite a bit of time before the City finally decided to hire him.

For Windsorites, frankly it would be a horrific disaster.

http://www.windsorsquare.ca/2012/03/todd-langlois-affair-solution/

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Zalev and the A-word

By Anne Jarvis

Audits? What audits? If I had a nickel for every time Max Zalev told me “Enwin is audited all the time,” I’d be rich.

Zalev has told me this so many times that it should be the corporation’s new slogan, carved above the entrance to its building on Ouellette Avenue, emblazoned on its trucks criss-crossing the city, stamped at the top of my monthly bill, which I send to my accountant to decipher.

Zalev, of course, is chairman of Windsor’s audit committee and CEO of Enwin Utilities, which is owned by the city. (Lots of people think that’s a conflict of interest.)

Here, straight from my notes, for the record, is what Zalev has said.

http://www.windsorstar.com/news/Jarvis+Zalev+word/6275238/story.html

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Enwin never had detailed audit: OEB

Board counters claims of Zalev, Francis

By Dave Battagello

WINDSOR, Ont. — The Ontario Energy Board says it has never performed a detailed audit of Enwin Utilities nor undertaken a “value for money” investigation.

“It’s not our mandate, it’s not what we do,” said Sylvia Kovesfalvi, acting manager of communications for the province’s energy board.

Enwin CEO Max Zalev and Mayor Eddie Francis say there is no need for the city’s internal audit department to dig deeper into the city’s utility company because it is thoroughly audited by the OEB.

The issue arose following the firing of the city’s auditor general, Todd Langlois, who alleges that among the reasons for his termination was his desire to audit Enwin.

Langlois has launched a $2.4-million wrongful dismissal lawsuit against the city.

An auditor general can undertake a value-for-money audit which can assess the effectiveness and efficiency in the way money is spent. That differs from regulatory or financial audits which focus on compliance, taxation and the accuracy of financial statements.

The mayor has repeatedly indicated anyone is welcomed to audit Enwin, but he added the cost would be huge and a waste since OEB “has auditors who come in” to study the balance sheets.

http://www.windsorstar.com/news/Enwin+never+detailed+audit/6275239/story.html

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TAMA Demands: Open the Books At Enwin/WUC

By Ed Arditti

You have two choices on Saturday morning. Sleep in or join up with your fellow Windsorites. Just keep on reading

Hip, hip, hooray!

The Star finally did an Editorial on the stink that one can smell all over the City. No, not about the Langlois affair and the lack of audit of WUC/Enwin but about skunks. Now that is the kind of hard-hitting, relevant, up-to-the-minute, decisive, public spirited journalism that Paul Godfrey obviously wants for his Postmedia newspapers.

Oh me, oh my. And here I was thinking that I was protected by the Ontario Energy Board who did all these high-priced audits on Enwin according to our Leaders.

Turns out, if one reads Annie and Dave Battagello in the Star today, that this is not so.

http://www.windsorsquare.ca/2012/03/tama-demands-open-the-books-at-enwinwuc/

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Is The City Of Windsor Hiding Something

By Ed Arditti

Slowly but surely the rights of citizens are being eaten away. Secrecy above all has become the rule in Windsor.

I must admit I don’t understand the reason for it all. It really isn’t all that complicated running a town the size of Windsor. Why is there the need to keep so much information away from us?

Are our Leaders so afraid that we cannot handle the truth? Are they keeping away the truth from us because it would be so horrific for us to know? Or could it be something worse or at least something that can give rise to such a concern?

This is not an academic concern. The last thing that we need in this City at this time is to be distracted. Yet we are. The Langlois affair is a disgrace. And then I read Council Halberstadt’s Blog today and was extremely disgusted. I’ll talk about it later.

I found this commentary in the Detroit Metro Times very interesting:

http://www.windsorsquare.ca/2012/03/is-the-city-of-windsor-hiding-something/

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Freedom of Information: Is It Time To “Lawyer Up?”

By Chris Schnurr

Have you ever had one of those moments when you don’t know how quite to respond to something and instead sit there aghast in stunned silence? I had one of those moments today courtesy of the City of Windsor.

Now don’t get me wrong with only one exception my experiences with city employees and senior staff have been exceptional. The exception was the frosty reception I received from one senior administrator a few years ago that had me yearning for the warmth of the Arctic Ocean. Next time I will don a scuba suit should I have to deal with that individual again.

But today had me asking myself if transparency and municipal accountability is so important to the City of Windsor, why is it that nearly every single time I request information I find myself wishing I had studied law? I guess I’ll have to “lawyer up” when navigating what appears to be increasingly rough waters to access information.

http://www.windsorsquare.ca/2012/03/freedom-of-information-is-it-time-to-lawyer-up/

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Silence Deafening on Angela Berry File

By Alan Halberstadt

At the February 21, 2012 meeting of Windsor City Council, I asked the following question during the Order of Business item entitled “Council Questions”:

Council Halberstadt asks the City Solicitor and the CAO for a status report on the current length of the investigation related to the Angela Berry workplace harassment complaint against the city, including an estimated timeline and an explanation of the process going forward once the investigation is completed, and any recommendations are submitted to Council. Report requested for March 19th Council meeting.”

Normally, Council Questions are automatically moved, seconded and carried, in other words rubber stamped, by Council. On this occasion, when Mayor Francis asked if there was a seconder for my question, there was none.

It appears quite astonishing that the rest of City Council does not want to know what’s going on with this file, given the fact that they are all named, and could conceivably be found liable at some point in time, in explosive charges by Ms. Berry alleging workplace harassment and a toxic working environment at City Hall.

http://alanhalberstadt.wordpress.com/2012/03/07/silence-deafening-on-angela-berry-file/

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Why Windsor Does Not Have A 0% Tax Increase

By Ed Arditti

It’s our tax money burning a hole in Edgar’s pocket.

“The five-year plan for the city shows that the “non-traditional” side of the capital budget will have $32.1 million in untethered money in each of the years 2014 and 2015…

“There’s $64.2 million in unallocated funds. That is money that’s available,” Colucci said.” (Dalson Chen, The Windsor Star April 1, 2011)”

Is it really any wonder that Councillors’ role in this year’s Budget process is virtually non-existent.

Given all of the noise about the Auditor General, if the Eminence Greasie was around, the suggestion to the Mayor would have been to REDUCE taxes not hold them to a 0% increase. Even if it was a miniscule reduction, pretend to give the public something to really cheer about.

Imagine the headline that would have created that would have buried all of those negative stories about the firing of Mr. Langlois. Why, without trying too hard, the Star could have written about all of this positive tax news for weeks. I can just imagine what the lob throwers on CKLW would have said every Tuesday morning when questioning the Mayor.

The sycophantic praise would almost have been unbearable after a while.

http://www.windsorsquare.ca/2012/03/why-windsor-does-not-have-a-0-tax-increase/

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AG Blocked From Investigating Fraud

By Chris Schnurr

On the CBC, Mayor Francis may dismiss allegations that he, the CAO, and the audit committee prevented the city’s Auditor General from doing his job as “irrelevant” in the court of law; but when it comes to the confidence taxpayers place in both administration and council, these allegations are very troubling.

In fact, they are so relevant that hundreds of people are signing petitions throughout the city including one calling upon the Auditor General of Ontario (AGO) to take a look at Enwin Utilities, Enwin Energy and Windsor Canada Utilities Ltd. and another asking the AGO to review Windsor’s Office of the Auditor General. A residents group Taxpayers for Accountability in Municipal Affairs has also been created, of which I am a member.

Now we’ve learned through Anne Jarvis’ column the Auditor General, Todd Langlois, was being shut out of fraud investigations and according to emails acquired by the Windsor Square, this may have included an ongoing investigation.

http://www.windsorsquare.ca/2012/03/ag-blocked-from-investigating-fraud/

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There Is Only One Person Left To Be Blamed

By Ed Arditti

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.

Annie has done it now in her column in the Star on March 2, 2012 “Asleep at the switch.” If this slamming of Council does not stick, then there is no turning back.

There really is only one more chapter that she can write in her book about the Langlois affair. I expect that she does not want to write it but she has put herself in the position where she has no other choice but to do so.

I find it very interesting. The Star Editors can write a scathing Editorial about the Ornge helicopter scandal but not a word about the Auditor General fiasco:

http://www.windsorsquare.ca/2012/03/02/there-is-only-one-person-left-to-be-blamed/

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