Mayor Reveals Identity Of Numbered Company Campaign Contributor
By Robert Thomas
Mayor Clive Tolley said transparency and accountability is important in the campaign process on Monday evening at the same time he has yet to publicly identify two Saskatchewan numbered companies who contributed to his byelection campaign.
On Monday evening Council in a 7 - 0 vote decided accept the candidates’ expense report on the 2021 Mayoralty byelection. Council heard all nine candidates reported their expenses as well as the contributors to their campaign within four months of the election date.
In the post Council media scrum MJ Independent asked Mayor Tolley what he thought about the process as well as identifying who his campaign contributors who donated through numbered companies.
“Yes I do,” Mayor Tolley said when asked if he thought the system of making campaign contributions and expenses public.
“Our system goes way, way back in tradition and it is yes you tell people how much you got from contributors and who contributed,” he said, adding “And I don’t think anything needs to be hidden there so I am fine with that.”
Mayor Tollie spent $16,008 on his successful campaign with the same amount included as contributions.
The Mayor’s disclosure lists lists four numbered companies three from Saskatchewan - 101153015 Saskatchewan Limited - $5,000, 101074647 Saskatchewan Limited - $1,000 and 101153015 Saskatchewan Limited - $500 - as contributors to his campaign.
As well as what appears to be an Alberta numbered company 593818 AB - $200.
Two pages showing the contributors and amounts to Mayor Clive Tolley’s campaign - source candidate declaration
MJ Independent then asked if the Mayor was willing to make pubilc the names of people from the three Saskatchewan numbered companies who contributed to his election campaign.
“This is numbered companies because that is what they gave me in terms of information on their cheque but I don’t know if I can tell you who they are,” Mayor Tolley responded.
“I think an investigative reporter from the Moose Jaw Express or Moose Jaw Today dot com suggested he had done some research and Mr (Jason) Antonio has done some research and found out I think and printed that so I don’t want to say as I am not certain which companies you are referring to,” the Mayor responded.
In his story Jason Antonio was able to identify the ownership of one of the numbered companies who had donated to the Tolley campaign.
MJ Independent then asked “there are three of them and you are telling me you cannot get (reveal) the person who gave you that cheque? (Is it) you don’t know or won’t tell us?”
“No, no I know that one that came to me from Mr Shea Jamieson and his company. And he is and I don’t know who all the shareholders are in that company but that is where that cheque came from,” Mayor Tollie replied identifying Mr Jamieson as the contributor of $5,000 with the numbered 101153015 Saskatchewan Limited company.
The identities of the remaining numbered companies contributing to Mayor Tolley’s campaign remain a mystery.