28 f�vrier 2004
Scandalized
Sponsorship abuse appalled Olympian Bedard
Stephanie Rubec
OTTAWA -- Olympic hero Myriam Bedard has fired back at Via Rail chairman Jean Pelletier for dismissing her as a "pitiful single mother" and denying her claim that she was fired for questioning the steep commissions paid to a Montreal ad agency. Bedard, two-time gold medallist in the biathlon, complained in a Feb. 13 letter to Prime Minister Paul Martin about Via's willingness to sign off on inflated invoices and about her treatment at the hands of the Crown corporation.
Bedard, hired in January 2001 by Via's marketing department, said she was forced to sign a resignation letter a year later after raising the alarm about inflated bills by Groupaction Marketing -- sometimes 10 times the going rate.
"The invoices did not correspond to the work that was done," Bedard told a Quebec newspaper.
"For example, if we asked for a simple logo to be taken off an ad and reprinted, we were billed $4,000. Other firms would have charged $220 or $300. I thought that was completely abhorrent."
Bedard, who is demanding her job back, shot back yesterday at her former boss, Pelletier, who was once chief of staff to former prime minister Jean Chretien.
'VERY, VERY LOW'
On Thursday, he told La Presse that Bedard was just seeking publicity: "I don't want to be mean, but this is a poor woman in a pitiful state, a woman with no husband that I know of. She's feeling the pressure of being a single mother with financial responsibilities. Basically I find it pitiful."
Bedard called Pelletier's remarks reprehensible, noting she has been married for two years.
"Can you imagine all the single (mothers) that read the paper ... how they felt?" she said. "I found that very, very low. And you have to be very limited in your head to speak like that. Limited intellectually."
Pelletier issued a written apology yesterday, saying his comments were "inappropriate."
Via also issued a statement yesterday denying Bedard had been fired: "Bedard was hired ... but it soon became clear that the working relationship did not suit her needs and she resigned voluntarily from the corporation ..."
Bedard is to be invited by the Commons public accounts committee investigating the sponsorship program to tell her story.
Treasury Board President Reg Alcock and Transport Minister Tony Valeri are investigating Bedard's claims.
Groupaction is one of a handful of ad firms under investigation by the RCMP.
Valeri stated he will wait for a response from Via's interim CEO, Paul Cote "before deciding (to) take further action."
page mise en ligne le 28 f�vrier 2004 par SVP
