Dion-Kovach FCM Ouster: Cover Up?

Now that's interesting... the link to the main article reporting the allegation that Mr. Dion had something to do with Ms. Kovach's ouster from the FCM has suddenly gone dead... after having checked the link myself this week.

When the press release was issued last week by the FCM, I crossed my T's and dotted my I's before posting anything on this major story... I provided all the links to the relevant news articles over the last eight months, including this key one, from the Guelph Tribune... which has suddenly vanished. Of course, being in the IT sector, I understand that these sorts of things do happen occasionally... but the timing is most unusual, don't you think? The FCM gives the press release, I post my views on it and list all the relevant links, and then suddenly the main link that reports the allegations of Dion's involvement goes dead within a week... what gives?

Of course, there's the good old Google archive. A copy of the article has now also been dutifully archived on my computer... just in case.

Why did this story suddenly vanish, after having been there just last week? Why all of a sudden, after this FCM story has just been given new life? The timing is just too coincidental for me. Like I've said before, this release from the FCM exonorating Ms. Kovach has raised more questions than it's answered.

In other news related to this story (which lead to my discovery that the Guelph Tribune article had vanished), the City of Guelph issued their own statement regarding the cryptic FCM statement from last week. In it, the City states that "Mayor Karen Farbridge is pleased that FCM has provided this closure on the matter."

Far from it... this issue is far from being closed. The City's statement blatantly reminds us that there's a big huge gaping hole in this whole thing that's still unresolved... "In March 2007, the Board of Directors replaced [Ms. Kovach] with Winnipeg Councillor Gord Steeves without stating a reason."

The FCM has never once stated the reason... but when she got tossed, Ms. Kovach did, in the now missing article... "FCM staff told her that Dion had contacted FCM and the Big City Mayors Caucus "to say he would not deal with FCM with me as president"."

That's one heck of an accusation... one that has never been addressed. Now, Ms. Kovach is under a confidentiality agreement, so she can't talk about it anymore. But I've still never heard an answer to this very important question. Now, with the FCM openly going at the Harper government over infrastructure funding, it reopens this question, and raises an even bigger one... did Dion demand the removal of Ms. Kovach because he was afraid the FCM wouldn't do his bidding in attacking the government? Was he concerned that the FCM may take a more consilliatory tone with the government because of Ms. Kovach's Conservative connections?

Was it perhaps because Mr. Dion wanted people with established Liberal connections running the FCM, as Mr. Steeves and Mr. Vrbanovic had?

Like I've been saying all along, something stinks here. Therefore, since no one else is asking, I'll ask again... and maybe this time, someone will start asking the unanswered questions... Mr. Dion, did you or your staff have anything to do with Ms. Kovach's removal from the FCM?