David Collenette

[Somalia Inquiry, April 17th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, it is contemptuous of the three people who are charged with heading this inquiry.

Justice Létourneau has set aside two or three weeks on this specific case. Everybody concerned, including the chief of defence staff, will have an opportunity to make their views known and to give their points of view. Then people can judge accordingly.

For the hon. member to read selective quotes from certain documents into the record, some of which may be germane to that investigation, to create a certain impression is absolutely and totally unacceptable. I would say it is unparliamentary and it is even un-Canadian.

[Somalia Inquiry, April 17th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, what the hon. member and the Reform Party is doing is absolutely reprehensible and it is contemptuous-

[Department Of National Defence, April 17th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, as I just said, I will take the question as notice and give the hon. member an answer.

[Department Of National Defence, April 17th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I cannot discuss individual cases publicly because that would contravene the Privacy Act. However, if the hon. member is giving me notice of a question that really should be put down on the Order Paper I will get him an answer in due course.

[Somalia Inquiry, April 17th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, it has become patently obvious that the hon. leader of the Reform Party has never read the terms of reference of the Somalia inquiry. The inquiry is to look into cover-up. The inquiry is to look into the destruction of documents. The inquiry is to determine if there is wrongdoing. That is the forum, a neutral place with three independent observers, not a partisan inquisition on the floor of the House of Commons.

[Somalia Inquiry, April 17th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, once again the hon. member is so concerned about the public affairs issue. Last week the commission chief, Justice Létourneau, said that he would set aside two or three weeks to look at this specific question. He starts those hearings on Monday. That is where all the questions should be answered. That is where all the evidence should be placed, not in the House of Commons.

The hon. member talks about dereliction of duty. If he wants to talk about dereliction of duty I will, but of the dereliction of duty of him and his colleagues.

Yesterday the hon. member made a grave allegation on the floor of the House and went outside where parliamentary immunity was no longer present and that allegation evaporated. His defence critic has had so many positions on the inquiry that his credibility has evaporated.

The hon. member for Surrey-White Rock-South Langley attacked and made allegations about CSIS some weeks ago and that evaporated. The trend is clear, the Reform Party will evaporate in the next election.

[Somalia Inquiry, April 17th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I am sorry the leader of the Reform Party thought the answer was weak. Perhaps that reflected the weakness of the question.

The question cannot be answered because all of the assumptions in the question are totally false.

I have to reiterate that a commission of inquiry is looking into all the matters that concern the hon. member so much. That commission of inquiry should be allowed to do its work. We should not be playing a political game in the House of Commons that could injure the process of justice, that could further injure the reputation of the men and women who serve in the armed forces and perhaps even injure the reputation of Parliament.

I would ask the hon. member to confine his questions to what is relevant. The relevant questions to be asked are those that will be faced by the inquiry and to appreciate that the inquiry should do its job to the fullest extent possible.

[Somalia Inquiry, April 16th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, once a day the leader of the Reform Party has made accusations. He has not bothered to get the facts. He has drawn conclusions and he wants to mete out punishment.

We established an inquiry to look at this matter, to decide if there was wrongdoing. If wrongdoing is identified, the civilian or the military police authorities can take action and bring the discipline the hon. member wants.

I do not believe the hon. member after allegedly agreeing with the government that we did the right thing in establishing the inquiry really believes the inquiry can do its job. His very

questions show that he has no faith in the whole inquiry process and I think that is sad.

[Somalia Inquiry, April 16th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, this is not a political science class at a Canadian university. If the hon. leader of the Reform Party does not know what ministerial responsibility is, he obviously does not know much about the Canadian parliamentary system and far be it for me to educate him.

[Somalia Inquiry, April 16th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, this is a difficult problem for all Canadians. It is difficult for the Canadian Armed Forces. It is creating a considerable pall over the operations of the forces, over men and women who are serving with distinction every single day, whether at home or abroad. Because of certain incidents which occurred three years ago everybody has been smeared and tarnished.

To get at the truth, the government discharged the commitment made by my colleague the minister of fisheries when in opposition to put an inquiry in place.

I would ask in the spirit of fairness for the opposition to allow the commission to do its job.