No Canadian flags at half-mast for La Joya prisoner

THE REPORTED DEATH, in a Panama hospital, of a La Joya prisoner, has gained national attention in Canada, with some of his former acquaintances, suggesting that the report is another trick by a fraudster who has already embarrassed the Canadian Prime Minister

A Thursdday report in The Globe and Mail,, Canada’s national newspaper, says:
PRIME MINISTER Stephen Harper has apparently suspended the protocol that would have seen the Peace Tower flag flown at half-mast in honour of Arthur Porter, the controversial physician who has died while fighting extradition in Panama.
Dr. Porter was wanted on charges of fraud and corruption in Canada, but he was also a member of the Privy Council. He received the honour in 2008 when Mr. Harper appointed him to the body that serves as the watchdog for the country’s spy agency.
According to federal protocol, the flag on the Peace Tower in Ottawa should be flown at half-mast on the day of his funeral. However, a senior federal official said “given the circumstances, the government will not follow the usual protocol.” The official added that the “decision came from the Prime Minister.”
Born in Sierra Leone, Dr. Porter quickly developed high-level contacts in Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec City after he moved from the United States to Canada in 2004. He made a name for himself as a hospital administrator and a plugged-in political operative.
He became toxic in recent years, however, as questions emerged over his role in an alleged kickback scheme related to the construction of new hospital in Montreal.
Dr. Porter started running the McGill University Health Centre in 2004, and was instrumental in the awarding in 2010 of a $1.3-billion contract to SNC-Lavalin to build a massive new English hospital in Montreal. In 2013, two years after he left the health centre, Dr. Porter was charged with fraud and accepting bribes by Quebec’s anti-corruption unit.
He kept asserting his innocence as he fought extradition and battled lung cancer in Panama, where he was arrested as he tried to leave the country in 2013.
The McGill University Health Centre refused to comment on his death on Wednesday , except to extend its condolences to Dr. Porter’s family.
Mr. Harper has been accused by the opposition of having lacked judgment for appointing Dr. Porter to the Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC), which oversees the activities of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service. When he joined SIRC, Dr. Porter received the title of privy councillor, a story he recounted with pride in his 2014 autobiography.
“I was now the Honourable Arthur Porter. I received a heightened security clearance. When I die, the flag flying above Parliament will be brought to half-mast,” he wrote.
In his book, The Man Behind the Bow Tie, Dr. Porter said he had gone through a “full-field” security-clearance process in the United States in relation to a position with the U.S. Department of Health. He added he was surprised at the lack of due diligence to work at SIRC, where he received access to classified material. “I did not have conversations with members of CSIS. Nobody came to my home. Whether extensive investigations occurred in the background, I don’t know. I certainly never heard of it,” he said.
As news reports emerged on July 1 about Dr. Porter’s death, some of the people who had worked with him over the years were skeptical, fearing he had pulled another one of his tricks.
“He’s fooled so many different people on so many different things, I don’t believe anything the family says,” said a member of Montreal’s medical establishment.
A spokeswoman for Quebec’s anti-corruption unit refused to comment, stating she was awaiting official confirmation from federal officials.
In mid-afternoon, a spokesperson for Canada’s Department of Foreign Affairs responded to questions about Dr. Porter’s death by stating: “We are aware of the death of a Canadian Citizen in Panama. … Due to the Privacy Act, further details on this case cannot be released.”
The initial announcement of Dr. Porter’s death came from the co-author of his autobiography, Ottawa journalist Jeff Todd.
“While family was present in the country, he died suddenly and alone,” Mr. Todd said in a statement on his website.
In his book, Dr. Porter said the money from SNC-Lavalin was related to his work on international projects, not his work on the Montreal hospital. He said he helped the firm’s interests in Africa over the years, including in Libya where the company enjoyed tight connections with the Gadhafi family.
“I think people often muddled SNC-Lavalin’s strong interest in my international skills with its bid for the hospital contract. It was an unfortunate misperception,” he said.
Dr. Porter developed a friendship during his time at McGill with Philippe Couillard, who was Quebec’s health minister and is now the province’s Premier.
“There was a period when Couillard called me every day, asking what I thought about this issue or that decision,” Dr. Porter said. Mr. Couillard has since distanced himself from Dr. Porter, stating a health company that they jointly created never got off the ground.