Failed candidate put to work handing out B.C. Liberal patronage appointments

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VICTORIA— New Democrats have uncovered documents showing that the failed B.C. Liberal candidate for Port Coquitlam, Barbara Lu, was hired by the B.C. Liberal government to help hand out patronage appointments, many of which have gone to other failed B.C. Liberal candidates.

“The B.C. Liberals are ripping off the taxpayers with their ‘failures first’ jobs program that abandons merit in favour of finding soft landings for failed B.C. Liberal candidates,” said New Democrat finance critic Mike Farnworth. “The process for making public appointments is supposed to be transparent and consistent. The only thing that’s transparent and consistent is the B.C. Liberal’s abandonment of merit in favour of appointing failed candidates, friends and political insiders.”

As a Human Resources Analyst for the Board Resourcing and Developing Office, Ms. Lu’s duties involves helping with the “recruitment and selection of individuals who serve on the Province’s boards, agencies and commissions.”

Since she was hired by Premier Clark staffer Athana Mentzelopoulos, the following failed B.C. Liberal candidates and friends have been given patronage appointments by the B.C. Liberals:

  • Ken Kramer, failed B.C. Liberal candidate for Burnaby-Lougheed, was appointed to the Emergency Medical Assistant Licensing Board
  • Steve Kim, failed B.C. Liberal candidate for Coquitlam-Maillardville, was appointed to the Multicultural Advisory Council.
  • Ida Chong, failed B.C. Liberal candidate for Oak Bay-Gordon Head, was appointed to the University of Victoria Board of Governors
  • Kenneth Fung, who called into a radio station under a fake name during the election to spread malicious rumours about a B.C. New Democrat candidate, was appointed to the University of B.C. board of governors.

In addition to these appointments the B.C. Liberal government’s ‘failures first’ job program has resulted in government jobs for nine other failed B.C. Liberal candidates, not including those who worked for the B.C. Liberal government before the election.

The documents, received from a Freedom of information request, can be found at this link.