Spreading fertilizer with Aflonso

"I thought of calling the police", ok, nice gesture, but no follow through. Maybe he couldn't find a quarter, or possibly lost the local RCMP detachments phone number. We'll give him the benefit of a doubt. Regardless, Alfonso Gagliano claims he was talked out of making the fateful phone call by bureaucrats. Gagliano is in full damage control these days, saying he's done nothing wrong. Claiming he's the wronged party in the disgraced sponsorship fiasco, and is being used as the scapegoat for the entire project. In newspaper interviews and television chat shows, Gagliano is popping up everywhere (but in the Parliamentary committee room investigating the scandal) suggesting that there were other people involved who deserve much more blame than he. He even goes so far as to say his lawyers are contemplating a lawsuit over the situation.

Claiming he doesn't want to point fingers, he promptly goes about doing just that. Suggesting that current Prime Minister Paul Martin should have know that there were problems with the program. He points out that Dianne Marleau actually started the program in 1996, he merely inherited it in 1997, conveniently overlooking the fact he ran the program for the next few years. He blames his former deputy minister for talking him out of calling in the investigators. However, that same deputy minister has already appeared in committee and given testimony, that Gagliano was a hands on operator of the sponsorship program, which somehow lost 100 million dollars in various questionable activities.

Interestingly enough, Gagliano backed out of appearing in front of the commons committee investigating the situation last month, because he didn't feel properly prepared to testify. Obviously he's overcome his reticence to discuss the matter and must feel he has his facts in order. Unfortunately for Canadians he's yet to actually speak under oath. But that may soon change, and not a minute too soon. Until then, he should take the advice of those Hollywood television cop shows, "you have the right to remain silent".