Careful listening to the audio tapes released by Gurmant Grewal today show significant errors in the transcript provided on the Connie parliamentarian's website.
Following is a revised portion of the transcripts based on the audio files downloaded from Grewal's site.
Extract begins:
UD[Ujjal Dosanj]: Tim told me to call. I think, as I said earlier, no PRIME MINISTER would ever want to compromise himself with that kind of appropriate (?) because he want to be able to say, "‘I did not make a deal in it, there was no deal’." [incorrect Grewal transcription] "I didn't make a deal with anybody. There was no deal." [corrected version] You came and we accepted you, if that happens. If you want to be able to say that honestly. That'’s why I was suggesting you what I was suggesting you.[word added] That was the difficulty that Tim had. And you saw that. I think from my perspective, I told you about [words omitted by transcriber] that's the way how my conversation went with the PRIME MINISTER, when I came to the Liberals. [words added by transcriber] You know we have Scott Brison, he essentially [word omitted] came as a back bencher, stayed a back bencher, then he was a parliamentary [words omitted by transcriber] PRIME MINISTER'’s [word added/substituted by transcriber] secretary.
GG [Gurmant Grewal]: No, he came directly.
UD: Not to the cabinet.
GG: OK
UD He was made parliamentary secretary.
UD Depends... and you know that'’s how the deals are made [words inserted by transcriber] these things happen. [clearly audible words omitted by transcriber] I think I just wanted to call you that to let you know the conditions that you should talk to me should you decide. If you don't decide then we should leave it. You wanna -inaudible - but you don't want to face the attack (?) and I want to make sure that's how it is -inaudible - and I think you need to really seriously think about the understanding...about how these things happen. It's a matter of trust...then it's a matter of the prime minister being able to appropriately deal with these issues when the time is right. [audible section omitted by transcriber. Note: Grewal repeatedly mutters "uh huh" to indicate he is listening.]
- Inaudible -
UD: PRIME MINISTER can never say I will give you X and then say [words omitted by transcriber] is never going to say to you that [words added/substituted by transcriber] that I never said that. You have to be able to say that I did not make a deal. That'’s very important. That'’s why this these ["this" = incorrect word by transcriber] kinds of deals are not made in that fashion. If you think about it, if you think it is appropriate -inaudible portion -
GG - inaudible -
UD: Then the understanding has to be one together [words omitted by transcriber] and then if there is an understanding. ...Volpe would not be difficult. The ethics commissioner, there is nothing we can do. It is independent thing and must remain independent. [words omitted by transcriber]
-inaudible- [punjabi conversation??]
GG: We want to talk with goodwill, it is stumbling block and should be out of the way irrespective of what we actually do. [The words "irrespective of what we do" stand out, suggesting Grewal was focusing on the immigration issue as his main objective. The Globe story this evening points to allegations that Grewal was accepting cash in exchange for expediting immigration matters. Hmm. Soliciting political influence to avoid a possible embarrassing investigation by the ethics commissioner, Mr. Grewal? Say it ain't so.]
UD: Volpe, will talk with him, but it will be.. [There is an audible portion of the tape in which Dosanj makes reference to the issue with Joe Volpe. Donsanj quite clearly indicates that there can be no promise because Volpe might say "I am right and you are wrong and then we will have to persuade him..." This is rendered incorrectly in the Connie version.]
Extract ends
Here are some general observations:
1. The translation sucks. Even someone who does not speak Punjabi can notice that the Punjabi to English translations are extremely poor - poor to the point that one wonders what the heck might be missing of substance and context from the conversations.
2. The Blackberry log on the portion involving Sudesh Kalia doesn't match the set of transcripts made available. There are calls on 18 May for example - several of them - that weren't released.
3. We also don't have the calls Grewal made to others. The SK log of calls also shows calls being made by Grewal to SK. Where are they?
4. In the portion of the calls related to discussions between health minister Ujjal Dosanj and Grewal, the phrase "prime minister" is inexplicably rendered in all caps. The ONLY reason to do this is EMPHASIS. But since the sections refer to a prime minister wishing to distance himself from the arrangement, one wonders what the heck the purpose would be of this mucking about other than to draw unnecessary attention to the prime minister.
5. Chunks of Dosanj's comments are inaudible or barely audible. The audio quality on the tapes of chats with Dosanj is as poor as it gets. Only a sophisticated audio process - such as the police might employ could sort out some of the comments that can't be heard by the unaided ear. Funny that Grewal hasn't turned over all his "evidence" to the police since he is alleging a crime took place.
6. There are some huge problems with dates. Grewal went public with his allegations on 18 May, yet this tape has some conversations taking place that same day. In one tape - the Murphy in Grewal office tape - the conversation supposedly takes place on the 18th according to the Grewal site. Yet for that to be true, it would have occurred on the same day Grewal went public.
Strangely, in the audio tape - which is a small portion of the transcript - Murphy makes no reference at all to Stronach even though her crossing would have taken place the day before. Instead, Murphy makes a cryptic reference to other members of the Conservative caucus he refuses to name. It is surreal to think that Grewal would have been able to meet openly in his office with the Prime Minister's chief of staff the day after Belinda kicked Stephen in the political goolies.
7. The bits that are audible are rendered so inaccurately in places that one wonders if they were not deliberately - albeit clumsily - altered. Perhaps they are hoping the media won't think twice about the "evidence".
8. Let's be clear about this, though: even if the audio tapes from Grewal are not perfectly clear, the omissions and additions to the transcript significantly alter the tone of the conversation between Dosanj and Grewal, for example.
The same can be said of the conversations between Tim Murphy and Grewal about the matter being discussed related to Joe Volpe. Murphy is clear that the process must be allowed to proceed and, implicitly, that there cannot be interference. Try and find that in the transcript. There are also bits of conversation which are plainly audible - arranging meetings for example - that are inexplicably left out of the transcript.
9. References to the prime minister have been inserted where other words are clearly used. Other sections, where Dosanj makes it unequivocally clear that there can not be a deal to cross the floor in exchange for something have been left out even though these sections are audible to a careful listener.
10. Let's also be clear that there is absolutely no evidence provided here that there was ever an offer of any favour in exchange for Grewal crossing the floor. In fact, both Dosanj and Murphy explicitly reject the notion. They do point to the possibility of some consideration being given down the road to an appointment or position, but this is the type of thing that any caucus member might expect.
11. It is easy to see that Murphy and Dosanj are suspicious of Grewal's motives - and rightly so. They are playing the whole thing as straight as possible, if for no other reason than because Grewal is a very small and largely insignificant fish. Belinda Stronach, on the other hand, was a major catch but again - there is no evidence of any inducement for her to change parties.
12. By the way, can someone explain why this transcription of the conversations with Dosanj translates a garbled Punjabi comment with the words Belinda Stronach that appear to have taken place before Grewal would have known about her conversations with the Liberals? More particularly, it would seem odd in the context that this conversation took place the same day or the day after Grewal went public yet the comments by Donsanj focus on Scott Brison and not Belinda Stronach.
Turn the whole thing over to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Grewal, his wife and whoever else is foisting this story on the country had better be ready to resign in disgrace if the edits on the transcript - poorly executed as they are - turn out to be but the tip of the iceberg in what I am still convinced is a Grewal scam.