Former Guelph Conservative campaign worker Andrew Prescott wrote the statement in July 2013 while he was upset over problems he was having getting accreditation from the party to attend the national convention in Calgary in November of that year.
Prescott never released the statement but did send it as a Facebook message to Michael Sona, who is on trial in Guelph for an Election Act violation in relation to a robocall that sent voters to the wrong polling station on May 2, 2011.
Prescott read the statement into the record on Wednesday at the request of Sona’s lawyer, Norm Boxall.
“It’s now crystal clear to all but the most rabid partisans that something amiss occurred during the 2011 election,” Prescott wrote. “It’s also patently obvious that what went on across the country was definitely not the work of any ‘lone staffer’ on a single campaign as we have heard repeatedly from Conservative spokespersons.”
The Conservatives fired Sona in February 2013 after they were linked to the Guelph robocall, and party spokespeople have frequently suggested that the call was the work of rogue local staffers.
But Prescott wrote to Sona that he believed the robocalls went beyond just Guelph.
“This scheme was clearly wide-spread, national and well organized. It required access, and ultimately complicity from someone higher up in the campaign in order to accomplish.
“While I don’t for a moment believe such actions were condoned by the national campaign, it’s painfully clear to all now that the Party is seeking to misdirect Canadians by accusing ‘local staffers’ of what was a national crime.”
Prescott made a comparison to the Watergate scandal that brought down former U.S. president Richard Nixon.
“It’s not the break-in that will get them in the end, it’s the coverup,” he wrote.
“Every time you hear the ‘lone staffer’ talking point, they’re lying to Canadians. Whoever came up with that ridiculous line should be fired immediately, as they have lost all credibility with the media and Canadians. We, Canadians and Conservative Party members, want nothing but the truth.”
Prescott said Thursday that he decided not to send the message.
“I wrote it angry, then calmed down,” he said in an email.
He didn’t really believe what he wrote at the time but “it was a good line to get some press coverage,” he said.
Prescott testified against Sona after reaching an immunity agreement with the Crown. On Wednesday, he gave evidence that circumstantially linked Sona to a scheme to send the Guelph robocall, but Boxall challenged his testimony, pointing out that his memory of events appeared to improve over time.
The Conservatives have always dismissively rejected allegations that there were dirty telephone calls outside Guelph, as the opposition has alleged.
The party points to a national robocall investigation released by Elections Canada in April that found no evidence of a conspiracy outside Guelph.
Critics have drawn attention to apparent shortcomings in the investigation.
Last year, a federal court judge found that there was evidence of voter suppression activities in ridings across Canada using the Conservatives’ database.
Original Article
Source: ottawacitizen.com/
Author: STEPHEN MAHER , GLEN MCGREGOR
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