Jaffer returns to committee, is accused of contempt

Rahim Jaffer faced down a parliamentary committee for the second time Thursday, but his responses angered MPs and led to an accusation that he was in contempt of Parliament.

The 38-year-old former Tory MP appeared before the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates on Thursday, and was again questioned about numerous aspects of his business relationships and personal behaviour over the past two years.

During his testimony Jaffer traded barbs with MPs who sit on the committee, which is probing allegations he engaged in illegal lobbying after leaving public office.

"We met a lot of witnesses who placed Mr. Jaffer in full contradiction -- as far as I'm concerned, he's a liar," said Bloc Quebecois MP Michel Guimond.

The Speaker of the House is expected to decide in the fall whether Jaffer has violated the privileges of Parliament by providing conflicting testimony to the committee and for declining to supply requested documents.

Several MPs asked Jaffer -- the one-time chair of the Conservative caucus -- about his use of parliamentary business cards after losing his seat in the October 2008 election. At least one witness has told the committee that Jaffer was using cards indicating he was an elected MP, months after he lost his seat.

The former Edmonton-Strathcona MP said he did not intentionally hang onto his old business cards, some were simply in the pockets of suits he used to wear. But he said it was well known to the public that he was no longer a sitting MP.

"I did not make it a habit to give out my old business cards," Jaffer told the committee.

Conservative MP Chris Warkentin questioned Jaffer about his reasons for taking down his personal website after unflattering media reports focused on its contents.

Jaffer said the Conservative party phoned him to tell him that their logo was appearing on his webpage. In response, he removed his site from the web.

In a series of follow-up questions, Warkentin suggested that Jaffer had "continued to break down your trust" with his former colleagues and constituents by providing testimony that appeared shaky to committee members.

Jaffer was also questioned about his use of a diplomatic passport and his use of an email designated for a parliamentary assistant to Helena Guergis, Jaffer's wife.

"They knew that was one that they could use to either get in touch with me through Helena's office or directly," said Jaffer, explaining his use of the email designated for the parliamentary assistant.

He clashed with his former colleagues at times, slamming the Conservative party for the treatment of his wife in recent weeks.

"The way my wife has been treated by your party and your government doesn't represent anything that I've ever seen and that I worked for during the time that I was an MP," Jaffer said in response to a question from rookie Conservative Paul Calandra.

"I don't even recognize this party any more," he added.

Jaffer's Thursday appearance came a day later than originally expected.

He skipped his scheduled appearance Wednesday to attend a doctor's appointment with Guergis, who was recently revealed to be in the midst of a "high-risk" pregnancy.

After hearing the news of the nature of the appointment with his wife, committee members voted to have Jaffer attend a special meeting on Thursday morning.

Guergis has also offered to appear before the committee.

In a letter to committee clerk Marc-Olivier Girard, Guergis' lawyer wrote that his client "remains eager to assist the Committee in its work, and looks forward to clarifying any issues which remain of concern."

"Ms. Guergis is quite willing to make herself available next week or in the weeks to follow," Howard C. Rubel wrote in the letter.

Prior testimony

Jaffer previously appeared before the committee on April 21, along with his business partner, Patrick Glemaud. Together, the two men are partners in Green Power Generation Corp, a company that promotes sustainable technologies and renewable energy products.

In that initial appearance, Jaffer was questioned about his business and the contentious claims that he has been involved in unregistered lobbying, which both he and his business partner denied were true.

Earlier this week, Jaffer sent a letter to the committee apologizing for "inadvertently" providing inaccurate information on some subjects -- including his occasional use of a parliamentary email after leaving office.

Jaffer said his erroneous testimony resulted from his desire to get in front of the committee as quickly as possible, without taking enough time to review his personal documents and records.

In the letter, he also said he was "unprepared for the aggressive and nasty tone of some of the questioning" during his April appearance.

His business activities first came under public scrutiny after a Toronto Star report detailed a meeting he attended in Toronto last fall -- the same night he was stopped by police and charged with cocaine possession and driving under the influence, though the charges were later dropped.

The Star report said the former MP met with a group of businessmen, one of whom later wrote an email claiming Jaffer had "opened up" the Prime Minister's Office to the people at the meeting. In Ottawa, a spokesperson for Prime Minster Stephen Harper said Jaffer had no access to the government.

A day after the report was published in the Star, Harper announced that Guergis had stepped down from her job as a junior cabinet minister after "serious allegations" about her conduct were brought forward.

Harper said Guergis would sit outside of caucus while an investigation was completed. He said he forwarded the allegations to the ethics commissioner and to the RCMP.

Since being ousted from the Conservative cabinet, Guergis has maintained her innocence and has pushed for the Conservative party to publicly reveal the nature of the allegations it has alluded to.