More mysterious departures at the top of OLG
Author of the article:Brian Lilley
Publishing date:May 03, 2021 • 23 hours ago • 3 minute read • 29 Comments
OLG logo.
OLG logo. SunMedia
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There’s more turmoil at the top of the provincial gambling monopoly with news that both the chair and vice-chair have left under a cloud of secrecy.
Chair Peter Deeb resigned in what some are calling a temporary fashion on Thursday, while vice-chair Jason Melbourne reportedly resigned on Wednesday.
According to sources with inside knowledge of the workings of the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG), the two men did not see eye to eye, but their matching resignations remain a mystery.
The reported reasons for Deeb resigning range from personal to a “temporary” resignation, but either way the order in council appointing him has been rescinded. The part-time position pays $146,700 per year plus expenses.
Deeb, a successful wealth management executive, was appointed to the OLG board in May 2019 and elevated to the position of chair later that year in December. His appointment came two weeks after Premier Doug Ford announced that an audit was being conducted of spending at OLG in the wake of reporting by the Sun.
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Stories of big raises and lavish office renovations by former OLG president and CEO Stephen Rigby saw Ford lose his cool in late November 2019. He promised an audit that would be made public.
“I’ll tell you what we’re doing with OLG, we’re sending an auditing team in there,” Ford said at the time.
“There’s one thing I won’t tolerate is people wasting taxpayers’ money. So once we get the audit done, we’ll make sure we’re transparent, we’ll be talking to the media, and you can look at the audit.”
That audit has never been made public, and according to some sources may be part of the friction that led to the departure of Deeb and Melbourne as the top dogs on the board at the gambling hub.
Rigby left his post as president and CEO in October 2020, long after his scheduled departure, amid a cloud of stories on expenses for his housing, travel and office renovations. The former federal bureaucrat even saw his pay increase from $453,339 in 2015 when he was hired under the Wynne government to $797,309 when he left.
Former OLG president and CEO Stephen Rigby.
Former OLG president and CEO Stephen Rigby. PHOTO BY FILE PHOTO /Postmedia Network
That works out to more than a 75% pay increase in five years, even though under Rigby revenues for OLG went up but payments to the province did not. He grew the bureaucracy, increased his own pay and even took bonuses on the way out the door.
As he left the organization, OLG was paying Rigby $847,000 in severance and benefits, not bad for a career bureaucrat from Ottawa who never made close to that in a year before he cashed in the chips at OLG.
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Neither the government nor OLG have answered questions regarding the status of the audit prompted by Rigby’s actions. Requests for comment on that front have gone unanswered by the finance ministry, the premier’s office and OLG itself.
Requests for comment have also been made to Deeb and Melbourne about their departures without response.
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OLG is a multibillion-dollar agency that generates large sums of money for the provincial government, but it has long been a problematic agency with executives coming and going under a cloud of controversy. It’s beyond time that the clouds departed from OLG, but that will require scrutiny of their operations and that includes releasing the audit.
Ford has his hands full with COVID right now but the audit he promised would be made public should be released, let the chips fall where they may.
blilley@postmedia.com
torontosun.com
Author of the article:Brian Lilley
Publishing date:May 03, 2021 • 23 hours ago • 3 minute read • 29 Comments
OLG logo.
OLG logo. SunMedia
Article content
There’s more turmoil at the top of the provincial gambling monopoly with news that both the chair and vice-chair have left under a cloud of secrecy.
Chair Peter Deeb resigned in what some are calling a temporary fashion on Thursday, while vice-chair Jason Melbourne reportedly resigned on Wednesday.
According to sources with inside knowledge of the workings of the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG), the two men did not see eye to eye, but their matching resignations remain a mystery.
The reported reasons for Deeb resigning range from personal to a “temporary” resignation, but either way the order in council appointing him has been rescinded. The part-time position pays $146,700 per year plus expenses.
Deeb, a successful wealth management executive, was appointed to the OLG board in May 2019 and elevated to the position of chair later that year in December. His appointment came two weeks after Premier Doug Ford announced that an audit was being conducted of spending at OLG in the wake of reporting by the Sun.
Advertisement
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
Stories of big raises and lavish office renovations by former OLG president and CEO Stephen Rigby saw Ford lose his cool in late November 2019. He promised an audit that would be made public.
“I’ll tell you what we’re doing with OLG, we’re sending an auditing team in there,” Ford said at the time.
“There’s one thing I won’t tolerate is people wasting taxpayers’ money. So once we get the audit done, we’ll make sure we’re transparent, we’ll be talking to the media, and you can look at the audit.”
That audit has never been made public, and according to some sources may be part of the friction that led to the departure of Deeb and Melbourne as the top dogs on the board at the gambling hub.
Rigby left his post as president and CEO in October 2020, long after his scheduled departure, amid a cloud of stories on expenses for his housing, travel and office renovations. The former federal bureaucrat even saw his pay increase from $453,339 in 2015 when he was hired under the Wynne government to $797,309 when he left.
Former OLG president and CEO Stephen Rigby.
Former OLG president and CEO Stephen Rigby. PHOTO BY FILE PHOTO /Postmedia Network
That works out to more than a 75% pay increase in five years, even though under Rigby revenues for OLG went up but payments to the province did not. He grew the bureaucracy, increased his own pay and even took bonuses on the way out the door.
As he left the organization, OLG was paying Rigby $847,000 in severance and benefits, not bad for a career bureaucrat from Ottawa who never made close to that in a year before he cashed in the chips at OLG.
Advertisement
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
Neither the government nor OLG have answered questions regarding the status of the audit prompted by Rigby’s actions. Requests for comment on that front have gone unanswered by the finance ministry, the premier’s office and OLG itself.
Requests for comment have also been made to Deeb and Melbourne about their departures without response.
OLG CEO Stephen Rigby (torontosun.com)
LILLEY: Lottery boss cashes out with $847,000 windfall jackpot
OLG CEO Stephen Rigby (torontosun.com)
LILLEY: OLG bosses cash in big while workers sit idle
OLG CEO Stephen Rigby (torontosun.com)
LILLEY: Ontario's political leaders say no big payout for lottery czar
OLG is a multibillion-dollar agency that generates large sums of money for the provincial government, but it has long been a problematic agency with executives coming and going under a cloud of controversy. It’s beyond time that the clouds departed from OLG, but that will require scrutiny of their operations and that includes releasing the audit.
Ford has his hands full with COVID right now but the audit he promised would be made public should be released, let the chips fall where they may.
blilley@postmedia.com
LILLEY: More mysterious departures at the top of OLG
There’s more turmoil at the top of the provincial gambling monopoly with news that both the chair and vice-chair have left under a cloud of secrecy.
