The common saying ‘with great power, comes great responsibility’ is extremely evident in the Toronto Computer Leasing Scandal, specifically in the first woman, as well as youngest, city treasurer of Ontario. As Treasurer of the City of Toronto, Wanda Liczyk oversaw a large annual budget and had a sizable influence on countless municipal government contracts. Ms. Liczyk failed to uphold boundaries of professionalism that were necessary in her position and in doing so partook in the corruption that occurred in the City of Toronto’s government in the late 1990s (The Honourable Madam Justice Denise E. Bellamy, 2005). Ms. Liczyk’s relationships with American IT consultant, Michael Saunders, and hairdresser turned computer salesman, Dash Domi, were never disclosed with Mel Lastman, the Mayor of Toronto at the time, and involved large conflicts of interest. These conflicts of interest demonstrated Ms. Liczyk’s inability to maintain transparency, objectivity and to claim accountability for her actions – all qualities needed in government officials the public is expected to trust (Milrad, 2006). What is a Conflict of Interest? Individuals in positions of power are elected to represent the public and to serve the people’s best interest, not to serve or benefit …show more content…
themselves. A conflict of interest tampers with this fact and involves a “pervasive form of corruption that occurs when elected representatives or public officials put themselves in a position where they receive a private benefit from decisions they make in their public capacity” (Stevens, 2018). Conflicts of interest comprise of one’s personal interest interfering with their official duties; once this occurs, problems begin to arise. Professionals, especially those working for the government, should be two things: independent, as well as objective. The presence of conflicts of interest indicate that the individuals involved are neither of these two things (McDonald, 2018). At the core of the issue of conflicts of interest is trust. Whether the conflict in question is an actual conflict of interest or even a potential conflict of interest, there is an abuse of the public’s trust. It is best for individuals, especially government officials, to avoid placing themselves in situations where a personal interest can interfere with any possible decision-making that must be done (McDonald, 2018). The Toronto Computer Leasing Scandal One of Canada’s distinctively famous scandals – the Toronto Computer Leasing Scandal – involved a computer deal that approximately doubled in cost, as well as the misuse of public funds and the abuse of their trust (Stevens, 2018). It all began in the year 1996 when Ontario’s government made the decision to amalgamate all seven areas of Metropolitan Toronto into a megacity. This megacity would have Mel Lastman, former mayor of North York, as their first mayor and would also have an annual budget of $5.5 billion. To oversee this budget, Lastman would bring along with him a young Wanda Liczyk, previously his trusted financial manager in North York, she became the Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer of Toronto (Stevens, 2018). Unbeknownst to Mayor Lastman, Liczyk had and would again walk “into a conflict of interest with her eyes wide open” (The Honourable Madam Justice Denise E. Bellamy, 2005). Michael Saunders – the American IT Consultant Toronto, now a megacity, needed a new computer system and this search became Liczyk’s responsibility as she had managed the computer file previously in North York. What Liczyk’s boss, Lastman, and her co-workers were unaware of was Liczyk’s sexual relationship of three years with Michael Saunders – a married IT expert and computer consultant from America (Stevens, 2018). During their relationship, which started back when Liczyk was the financial manager in North York, she continually partook in conflicts of interests as she guided computer business and contracts to Saunders and his company, American Management Systems (AMS). This also continued once Liczyk oversaw Toronto’s contracts and budgets (The Honourable Madam Justice Denise E. Bellamy, 2005). Saunders billed unlimited hours, as well as received accommodations, meals, and airfare paid for by North York. He was an unfriendly man who was difficult to work with, but individuals knew of his relationship with Ms. Liczyk and felt that they could not say anything without negative repercussions (The Honourable Madam Justice Denise E. Bellamy, 2005). It is evident that Saunders benefitted from his relationship (whether it was during or previously) with Liczyk. In the battle between tax systems (TMACS versus TXM), Liczyk consistently fought for TMACS to win and continued to do so even after TXM was originally chosen. TMACS was Saunders’ system and eventually won the contract after Liczyk interfered immensely. She withheld support from TXM, always favoured TMACS, would secretly extend Saunders’ work proposals, put Saunders in charge of implementing TXM (although it was in his best interest for it to fail), exceeded her signing limit for one of her lovers’ contracts, as well as halted payments for TXM’s development costs (The Honourable Madam Justice Denise E. Bellamy, 2005). Liczyk did not protect the City of Toronto’s best interests and her interactions with Saunders were both non-transparent and unjustifiable. This is in direct violation of her contract, which states that actual and apparent conflicts of interest are prohibited. These actions are also in direct violation with The North York Code of Ethics, which states to “never use the position to secure advanatges of favours for self, family or friends” (The Honourable Madam Justice Denise E. Bellamy, 2005). Dash Domi – Hairdresser Turned Salesman Once Ms. Liczyk became CFO and Tresurer of the City of Toronto, she met Dash Domi, brother of famous Toronto Maple Leafs hockey player Tie Domi, and hairdresser turned computer salesman. Dash was smooth with words, convincing and very persuasive which is exactly what his employer, the Dell computer company wanted in their employee in order for them to win a large contract to lease computers to the new megacity of Toronto (Stevens, 2018). Domi’s job was to impress and gain the favour of city decision-makers, one of whom was Wanda Liczyk. Whether or not their relationship was a sexual one, Ms. Liczyk still became an avid supporter in Domi’s mission to win the computer contract (Stevens, 2018). Domi attended Liczyk’s 40th birthday party at her home and was known to call her late at night and on weekends indicating that they had a close relationship (The Honourable Madam Justice Denise E. Bellamy, 2005). There were a few other key players (Jim Andrew and Tom Jakobek) involved in this conflict of interest scandal which amounted to Dash receiving over $1 million in commission from Dell for his work of ‘wining and dining’ these government officials (Stevens, 2018). The Future of Toronto’s Government As stated by Shanti Fernando, the Toronto Computer Leasing Scandal shows how “the decision-making process can be [easily] corrupted and how this can [then] lead to loss of public trust and inefficient and inequitable government” (2007).
Breaking rules surrounding ethics has been noted as one of the largest reasons for a decrease in public confidence/trust in one’s government (Fernando, 2007). Public inquiries, such as the one developed by Madam Justice Bellamy, address the concerns of the public and allow for them to review the government’s failings. Stemming from this, changes can be made and the Inquiry can be utilized as a resource for change (although it does not represent a change itself) (Fernando,
2007). Madam Justice Bellamy made several recommendations to improve the government of Toronto and increase its accountability, transparency, and professionalism: • Gifts received by staff/politicians should be tracked in a database that is searchable • Councilors/staff should not use their positions to further their own personal interests • Creation of an Integrity Commissioner to enforce strengthened Code of Conduct (CBC News, 2005; McGrath, 2015). This scandal was a ‘wake-up call’ for Toronto about its lack of ethical foundations in its government and Madam Justice Bellamy sought to adjust this with her recommendations. It is crucial to include ethical considerations in decisions made by government officials as this will increase public trust of government, as well as stress the accountability of said government officials (Fernando, 2007). Tindal and Susan’s (2007) recommendation to achieve good governance include: • Have senior employees set an appropriate example • Look for integrity and other ethical values during the interview/hiring process • Use corporate culture and the reward systems to reinforce desired behaviours. These are all steps that should be taken in governments, as well as in any business to improve underlying ethics. Conclusion Wanda Liczyk visibly did not have the ability to separate the two spheres of her life: personal and professional. She lacked accountability and did not care to enforce any codes of conduct that were already set in place (Fernando, 2007). It is crucial that organizations, as well as governments, hire/elect individuals who have a basic set of ethical attitudes or else these individuals will exert all their time and energy into finding loopholes around new rules or codes set in place (Tindal & Susan, 2007). To this day, Wanda Liczyk has not accepted that she has made mistakes in her past regarding conflicts of interest involving Michael Saunders and Dash Domi. Instead, Ms. Liczyk continually attempts to minimize her wrongdoings and deny the fact that her relationships with both men compromised her ability to make objective decisions (The Honourable Madam Justice Denise E. Bellamy, 2005). Ms. Liczyk should have removed herself from any situation where she was a decision-maker of contracts or business deals that involved Michael Saunders, as well as Dash Domi. Due to her close relationship with both men, anything that Ms. Liczyk did in situations that involved them was too much or inappropriate (The Honourable Madam Justice Denise E. Bellamy, 2005). If Ms. Liczyk was an ethical individual, she would have disclosed her personal relationships to her boss as soon as business became involved with her private life so that she could have stepped away from any large decisions she could not have made objectively. The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) investigated findings in Madam Justice Denise Bellamy’s Inquiry, but found no evidence worthy of criminal charges and dropped the case in 2010 (McGrath, 2015). Though this is the case, this Canadian scandal was crucial in the rearrangement of Toronto’s government and further development of policies to increase the role of ethics in policy-making processes.
constitution give the power of electing individuals into office wither it would that of high ranks or low ranks the people get to choose who it is that is put in those types of positions, “ And the People alone pass judgment in capital cases. ... It is the People who grant offices to the deserving, the most noble prize for virtue in a state. They also have authority over the ratifying of laws and — the greatest of their powers — they deliberate and pass judgment concerning war and peace”(Roman Constitution, [6.14.1]).
Lewis, C. W., & Gilman, S. C. (2005). THE ETHICS CHALLENGE IN PUBLIC SERVICE A Problem-Solving Guide (2nd ed.).
When dealing with corruption, first question to ask or to clarify is what corruption is. NSW Research (2002) describes corruption anything from gaining materialistically by virtue of position (for eg. getting a special discount at stores) to engaging in ‘direct criminal activities’ (eg. selling drugs). Newburn (1999) believes that there is a thin line between the definition of ‘corrupt’ and ‘non-corrupt’ activities as at the end, it is an ethical problem. For common people, however, bribery generalises corruption.
...o represent the interests of their voters, but also they promote the business matters of their investors (Norris, 1997).
Representation: the effort of elected officials to look out for the interests of those who elect them
Initially, the Founders intended to have a limit on the amount of time any one person could serve. In the Articles of Confederation, a rotation in office system was described, so that no one person could remain in a position for decades on end. However, this was abandoned in the Constitution because it was deemed unnecessary. At the time of the nation’s founding, the occupation of “politician” did not exist. One could hold an office for a number of years, but it was not considered a career path. Originally, politicians were seen as making great sacrifices, because they stepped away from their family and primary jobs for a number of years to serve their country, before returning to their normal lives (Vance, 1994, p. 429). In the words of Founding Father Roger Sherman, “The representatives ought to return home and mix with the people. By remaining at the seat of the government, they will acquire the habits of the place, which might differ from those...
However, seldom is this the case with American politics. There are far fewer politicians then there are low class workers or unemployed, and yet these politicians decide upon most all of the important decisions the country is faced with. The only time the rest of the people are involved is when these politicians spew out money and promises in an attempt to gain the p...
2. Do political and governmental elected politicians represent the general population or a small segment of the society?
Political leaders of the United States were, at one time, thought of as crucial members of our society. Ideally, their main goal was to represent and satisfy the needs of the American people. Unfortunately, over the last fifty years, our trust in our administrative representatives has drastically declined. Beginning with the great conspiracy theory that President John F. Kennedy’s assassination in 1963 was actually planned by political leaders, America had, for the first time in history, begun to question its faith in its very own government. Consequently, the American people became extremely hesitant when it came to electing officials into office.
Corruption is a persistent problem that plagues the world and it knows no boundaries. Transparency International defines it as the “abuse of entrusted power for private gain” (2013). For the purposes of this thread, ‘corruption’ is defined as any individual, collective, or structural act or process that permits the use of public authority or position for private gain. This definition captures the broad and many ways individuals and institutions abuse power and the public trust. In regard to whistleblowing, much conflict stems from the context in which the whistleblower is viewed.
Redford’s concept of democratic morality as a cornerstone of the public organization is befitting when analyzing the indoctrination of ethical standards, especially in governmental bureaucracy. As governmental entities compelled to uphold democracy, their legitimacy is derived from a democracy and they are therefore compelled to embrace it (Denhardt, 2007). The standards held by these organizations are derived from democratic rule, perhaps more so in the form of representative bureaucracy. It functions in such a way, that our views and agendas are to be legislated through our elected officials, and then enacted in law. It is only natural that citizens should expect society’s morals, values, and ethical standard to be expressed in our public organizations. If they are not expressed in the governmental institutions then it would inspire one to question: “What power does the democratic will ultimately hold?”
As, Goodnow has iterated the functions of politics communicate and addresses the state’s will however, he articulates that there is no boundaries or limitations to one or more authorities when managing politics, thus eluding to no appointed organization who handles political matters and the interest of the people. Perhaps, a contributing factor to complexities in the political and government systems and the functional roles of politics and administration. Woodrow Wilson essay “The Study of Administration,” he stresses that government systems and methods are in need of great improvement. (Woodrow. 1887) However, Wilson believes politics should be separated from administration, for administration should be a “field of business.” (Woodrow. 1887) Possibly speaking, if administration was separated would politics become more organized and an authority given to
‘The doctrine of dichotomy implied that the politicians and their direct appointees have the right to make policy decisions for the polity but it is the duty of the bureaucrats to carry those policies in good faith’ (Pfiffner, 2004, p. 2).
Although the potential duality within the life of a government official is grounds for the tolerance of most immoral actions, a code of conduct for elected government officials should still be executed. The dual lives only justify there being no obligation for elected officials to live a morally exemplary life in private; it does not justify the allowance of unethical lives with regards to the elected government offices. As long as the code of conduct revolves around the ethics of the professional life and excludes most immoral actions of the private life, the code should be upheld.
Politics is the means for attaining valued things. Although, valued things are different in every society, the means of securing those things has never changed. The competition for power, authority and influence will always be the backbone of politics. Applying power, authority and influence to the valued things that support the public good, will produce the quality of life a society desires. In the present day, citizens in the United States demand certain valued things such as welfare, education, safe streets and healthcare. Through politics, citizens can apply their power in many different ways to get the things they want. Power is the ability to get someone to do something they may or may not want to do. Through the use of or the application of coercion, persuasion, manipulation and negotiation, power is used to influence the system.