MAYOR SHANTZ'S ELECTION EXPENSES - THE PLOT THICKENS?

What exactly is going on here? If ever there was proof that submiting late , multi-page documentation is "Trial by Ambush" this is it. I've been rereading the Mayor's 28 pages of allegedly Audited Financial Statements and this I can tell you. Her Auditor did not audit her entire election expense documentation. He audited at best eight pages of her Financial Statement-Auditor's Report Form 4. That's it, a whole eight pages of her 28 page submission all neatly stapled together in one bundle and giving the impression of a comprehensive Audit. It was not! While the Auditor involved is undoubtedly a professional and has done a good job with the limited data he received; he himself very carefully included a "Basis for Qualified Opinion" clause in his report. It reads as follows:

"Due to the inherent nature of the transactions of a campaign, the completeness of contributions and other revenue and expenses is not susceptible to satisfactory audit verification. Accordingly, our verification of these amounts was limited to the amounts recorded in the candidate's accounting records and we were not able to determine whether any adjustments might be necessary to contributions and other revenue, expens, assets, liabilities and net assets.".

A very careful reading (as in two or three times) indicates that the mayor has told the truth in her page and a quarter submission to MECAC last Thursday. Despite the obvious inference that the Auditor audited all of her Thursday's late submissions, her carefully worded submission indicates otherwise. Similarily a very careful reading of the Auditor's page and a half report also indicates that all he audited were the eight pages of her Financial Statement-Auditor's Report Form 4. It is possible that if the Mayor had included this Auditor's Report when it was legally required by March 27, 2015 or even when she filed on February 2/15 that she would be in the clear.

Something is very peculiar here and to date is failing the smell test. The accountant involved, as mentioned yesterday here in the Advocate, is listed on page 8 of her Financial Statement along with the date of March 23, 2015. However his actual page and a half report is dated June 16, 2015. Did he start his audit four days before the filing deadline of March 27/15? If so why did mayor Shantz not exercise her right to an extended deadline while she waited for his audit? Did she allow the March 27/15 deadline to pass while knowing full well that her Financial statement did not have it's mandated Audit included and hence her report was false? These are extremely serious questions and require answers promptly.

The Thursday MECAC meeting was reported as the lead, front page story in both the Friday July 3 Waterloo Region Record and the Woolwich Observer.