I guess we need a refresher on the evidence.
I'm going to reflect on what the minister had to say. The minister made it abundantly clear that he has complied with all the rules and that he has retained a 50% interest in his business with Mr. Anderson. The rules allow that. Many members have businesses on the side. However, as a minister, he can't have a controlling interest in that company. He's essentially a silent partner.
He confirmed in evidence, when he attended, that he considers himself a partner in this small, two-person company. His other partner is Mr. Stephen Anderson. That's the first piece of evidence.
I'm taking a look at the actual text exchanges between Mr. Anderson and, potentially, the minister. It's dated September 8, 2022.
Stephen Anderson states, “What is going on? I just received this from Randy!” Now, this is a text message that he is sending to someone at Ghaoui. The person—the other Randy or the minister, Randy Boissonnault, doesn't call Stephen by his first name. It's simply Anderson.
It reads, “It's 13:14 MST and 15:14 EST it literally takes 10 seconds to complete a transfer, I am telling you, we are NOT ALLOCATING like this, please reach out and see what the reason is now, you assured me this morning”.
I'll stop right there. He wrote, “you assured me this morning”. Was that a telephone call? Was that another text exchange between the minister and Mr. Anderson? I don't know. It appears, just by reading between the lines, that the failure of Ghaoui to make this deposit had been an ongoing concern.
I know that I originally asked for records of September 8, 2022. It may find favour with all committee members if perhaps we go back 30 or 60 days for all communications between the minister and Mr. Anderson because it tells me that this is an ongoing issue and concern.
It continues, “you assured me this morning this was done first thing; and allowed you to hold this stock today”. This is the stock that was supposed to be delivered to Ghaoui, which mysteriously burned up in a deliberately set fire. It continues, “it's midday and nothing is completed”—this is the other Randy or it's the minister—“I am calling Felix to discuss.”
Now, who is Felix? We've heard that name before. According to Mr. Anderson, Felix's surname is Papineau and he is Stephen Anderson's “right-hand man in Quebec”.
It goes on: “I am calling Felix to discuss. Be available in 15 for a”—wait for it—“partner call”. It's not a consultant call. It's not an intern call. It's not an employee-to-partner call. It's partner to partner. Minister Boissonnault is a partner. His own words confirm he's a partner with Mr. Anderson.
That's evidence. That's not conjecture. That's not a witch hunt. This is real evidence shared to Canadians by Global News.
The reporter for Global News obviously asked a number of questions. When asked by the reporter if he worked with another Randy, “Anderson stated that he did, but would not disclose the employee's full name.” Of course, his partner wants to protect Minister Boissonnault.
He knows what the rules are, and Mr. Boissonnault can't be involved in the day-to-day affairs as a minister of the Crown, so conveniently, he declines to provide the name of the alibi Randy, or the other Randy. He said that the other Randy was head of logistics, and I referenced this yesterday, Mr. Chair, in my discussion at committee. Head of logistics.... Well, as any good reporter would do in this case, she did not accept that at face value. She conducted further interviews. She spoke with GHI's former suppliers.
Edward Anderson, who is the father of the partner, Stephen Anderson was identified as the company's logistics lead. His email signature had the title of logistics supply chain at GHI in 2021, according to emails viewed by Global. She reached out to Mr. Anderson. He, too, declined to comment. He, too, declined to identify who the other Randy is, because, again, he's the father of one of the partners, the other partner. He wants to protect the business relationship between his son and the minister, so of course he's going to decline and give no comment.
She also reached out to Felix Papineau—I referenced that— Anderson's right-hand man in Quebec, and Shawna Parker, Anderson's sister. Again, both declined to respond to questions. I referenced this yesterday, and I'm going to highlight it today. Mr. Anderson deliberately lied to the reporter when he said that the other Randy, or the alibi Randy, is head of logistics. It was his actual father. It wasn't the other Randy; it was his father.
Now, this is why we, in our original motion, wanted a representative of Ghaoui here, because they are part of this, They have a different perspective and a different interest. They're not here to protect Minister Boissonnault. Quite frankly, they want to get paid back the money that they lost or the product that they originally contracted for. They're out of pocket.
The reporter reached out to Ghaoui, and I'm going to read out this passage in the press release, because I think it's quite telling. It says, “It was Ghaoui's understanding”—during that text message that I referenced on September 8—“that Anderson was referring to Boissonnault”—Minister Boissonnault, not an intern, not an employee, not a consultant, not GC Strategies, not McKinsey but Minister Boissonnault—“whom Anderson had told her”—in a previous conversation—“was a partner in GHI and”—wait for it—“a public official”.
This is not only confirming Minister Boissonnault's partnership status but also his political status—a public official. This was confirmed by Ghaoui. They confirmed, “We have had no direct communication with Mr. Boissonnault at any point in our dealings with Stephen”. Well, of course not. He's not that naive to physically pick up the phone and write directly to Ghaoui. He's going to do that through back channels. He's going to deal with that through his partner, Mr. Anderson.
Anderson, again, was asked further questions and would not respond regarding any of the nuances of the text.
Then the story goes on and talks about how GHI has been embroiled in lawsuits, even though Mr. Boissonnault, Randy Boissonnault, the minister, was listed as director of the company for more than a year after his re-election.
Going back to Ghaoui, it looks like, as a result of the intervention of either the minister or the other Randy, they ended up later that day sending nearly a half a million dollars as a deposit to Anderson. The company says that it never got the gloves that it was contractually promised and that all that money was stolen.
Mr. Anderson and GHI deny that claim and, coincidentally and suspiciously, 16 days after Ghaoui wires the deposit, a fire breaks out, which the police say was deliberately set after a break and enter, and all product, including records and all invoices, literally goes up in smoke.
The author of the report opines why a former politician, referencing the minister, and a hockey coach, referencing Mr. Anderson, launched a PPE business in the industry's most tumultuous times. It remains a mystery; however, court documents and interviews with suppliers and buyers who did business with GHI reveal the inner workings of a start-up fraught with problems from the start.
In lawsuits against GHI dating back to 2021, suppliers claimed that the company did not pay for products they delivered. On May 3, the minister told Global News, “When I was running the company, all of the bills were paid.”
Court documents dispute that statement. A lawsuit filed by supplier Patterson Dental against GHI about two weeks after Boissonnault's re-election claims that the company did not pay 15 invoices between November 2020 and January 2021 totalling just under $400,000.
I think, sir, that I have made my point in terms of evidence versus politics versus conjecture. This is not a witch hunt. This is a function that any opposition member, particularly at this committee, would want to carry out to determine who this other Randy is. That is the $64-million question.
Thank you.