The TNRD has called for an independent audit after a spending controversy surrounding its former CAO and the Kamloops Voters Society (KVS) wants that audit to be truly independent.

KVS board member Randy Sunderman thinks whomever does the audit needs to be someone with no ties at all to the region. He pointed to a similar forensic audit done after alleged spending abuses happened at the BC Legislature in 2018.

“When the Legislature had their spending scandal they actually brought in Chief Justice Beverly McLaughlin who had a stellar record and was very independent from the process and had a look at things from that perspective and got to the bottom of it,” Sunderman said, on NL Newsday.

“I think the TNRD needs to take a similar approach where they remove themselves from the design of the process, the terms of reference, the hiring of the consultant.”

Sunderman says there are too many people close to the situation and would like to see the auditor come from far away.

“The Canadian Taxpayers Federation has suggested that it should probably be a firm from outside of British Columbia,” he said.

“Again, there’s a lot of relationships here with who they’ve hired in the past for auditors and those types of things so I think we really need a clear and transparent process given what’s unfolded particularly with comments from the board as to what their involvement was with some of this spending and stuff like that.”

The TNRD hasn’t decided on who will do the audit but a request for proposal is expected to go out soon.