Opposition leader Tony Wakeham says it is “unbelievable” that the provincial government received $150 million from the feds for the replacement of HMP, yet the provincial justice minister “doesn’t even know they received it.”
Tony Wakeham was responding to comments Bernard Davis made in the media last week indicating that they had not received any federal funding as of yet.
The $150-million was first uncovered through briefing notes obtained by CBC through access to information.
In a recent statement to VOCM News, the Department of Justice confirms that they did receive the $150 million in the 2023-2024 fiscal year. However, “It would be premature to comment any further due to the current procurement process for HMP.”
Wakeham has concerns about what’s happening behind the scenes.
“What’s going on? How is our government functioning?” asks Wakeham. He says it makes him wonder why it has taken so long to get a new pen built, “when the minister in charge doesn’t understand, or doesn’t know, that they’ve…got this money in hand.”