Subseries - Nanaimo Commonwealth Holding Society records

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Nanaimo Commonwealth Holding Society records

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  • Source of title proper: Title supplied based on the contents of the subseries

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  • [originals 1989-2001? (photocopied materials ca. 1958-1999)] (Creation)

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Physical description

Approximately 2.77m of textual records.

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Custodial history

The majority of the court documents in this subseries were originally created by the legal counsel of the NDP, and were returned to the Party ca. 2001-2002.

Scope and content

Subseries consists of records related to the Nanaimo Commonwealth Holding Society, its related organizations, and the various commissions and investigations into its activities, 1988-2001.

The Nanaimo Commonwealth Holding Society (NCHS) was a non-profit organization created by the CCF in 1954 to hold properties, provide event spaces, and support the organizing efforts of what would become the New Democratic Party. One of its primary methods of fundraising was through bingos. The formation of the NCHS was largely assisted by David Daniel Stupich, a former chicken farmer and accountant, who was later elected as the Nanaimo MLA for the NDP in 1963. Stupich remained heavily involved in Nanaimo politics, acting as a provincial NDP MLA from 1963-1969 and 1972-1988, and then as a federal NDP representative for the Nanaimo-Cowichan district from 1988 until 1993.

Under provincial regulations at the time, at least 25% of a bingo’s gross revenues were to be donated to charity. However, in 1988 the RCMP received a tip from Frank Murphy, one of the directors of the NCHS Charities Society (NCHS C/S) concerning the misdirection of funds. The RCMP proceeded to investigate, but the case failed to proceed due to lack of evidence. In May of 1992, allegations about the NCHS’s redirection of charity funds reached the media, including allegations that some of these funds had been redirected for NDP use, and the event quickly became known among the press as “Bingogate”. This prompted the RCMP to re-open an investigation (dubbed "Project Enigma"), and in 1993 search warrants were obtained. The investigation led to charges against the NCHS and several of its related societies in 1994 but, on the recommendations of Special Prosecutor Ace Henderson, not against any individuals involved. As the details of the case came to light, the NDP faced increasing public pressure to account for its actions, and in 1994, the services of Ron Parks, a forensics accountant with Lindquist Avey Macdonald Baskerville, were engaged to further analyze the collected evidence. The Parks Report, as it became known, was submitted in May of 1995, and among many other allegations, it suggested that in 1983-1984, the NCHS had funneled money ear-marked for charities into the NDP-owned Democrat Publications, which the NDP then attempted to pay back in 1993 as the NCHS allegations reached the media. This led to public accusations of a cover-up on the part of the NDP, and following the submission of the Parks Report, Bill M 207, the “Nanaimo Commonwealth Holding Society Public Inquiry Act” was passed in the legislature in 1995, calling for a public commission to investigate the activities of the NCHS. Headed for the majority of its time by Murray Smith and publicly known as the Smith Commission of Inquiry, the public inquiry began in late 1996, and continued until 2001. In 1999, at the age of 77, David Stupich pleaded guilty to fraud and the illegal operation of a lottery. He died in February of 2006.

Subseries includes court documents (primarily related to the Smith Commission of Inquiry), media clippings and transcripts, correspondence, public communications, reports, drafts, and other related material.

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Restrictions on access

Access is restricted to the files in this subseries until 2026.

Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication

Until 2026, a researcher may request special permission to access and use the material by applying to the Provincial Secretary of the New Democratic Party of British Columbia.

Finding aids

Associated materials

At the majority of NDP conventions, delegates would receive financial statements from various parts of the Party included in their convention kits, including the Nanaimo Commonwealth Holding Society. See the Convention records series for more information about the financial statements of the NCHS; see particularly files labelled as "convention kit" or "convention papers".

Following the negative public response to the NCHS scandal, the NDP assembled a Commission on Party Renewal, who was "asked to suggest measures to restore the confidence of the public and the party members in the B.C. NDP and its goals and aims." They produced a report, which can be seen in its interim form in file 442-44, "Table officers December 5/95", in the "Records of the Table officers, the Provincial Executive, and the Provincial Council" series of this fonds. A final version of the report can be found in file 443-20, "Table officers March 96". Other files in the series (such as 443-04 and 443-06) list the NCHS as agenda points at executive meetings and sometimes contain minutes of the discussion. Finally, NCHS financial statements were also often submitted to the various executive levels of the Party, and can be found occasionally throughout the series.

A brief biography of David Daniel Stupich, as well as 25 photographs, can be found in file 388-07 of this same fonds, in the "Candidate biographies" subseries of the "Elections" series.

When Dave Stupich resigned as a provincial MLA to run in the upcoming federal election in 1988, it triggered a by-election in his former riding of Nanaimo. Coverage of NDP activities in support of the 1988 Nanaimo by-election can be found in file 422-15, "Nanaimo by-election", in the "Records of the Director of Organization" series of this fonds.

File 427-07, "1984 convention nomination papers" in the "Convention records" series, indicates that in November of 1983, approximately 168 signatures were submitted to support David Stupich's nomination in the running for Party Leader at the 1984 NDP Leadership Convention. Ultimately, Stupich was eliminated in the third ballot at the Leadership Convention, and Robert Skelly was selected as Party Leader.

File 444-22, "Prov. executive May 23 Vancouver" in the "Records of the table officers, provincial executive, and provincial council" series of this fonds, contains a copy of a legal document outlining 61 counts brought variously against David Stupich, Marjorie Boggs, Elizabeth Marlow, Joseph Denofreo, and Democrat Publishing, Ltd. in relation to NCHS activities. File 444-24 of the same series contains a copy of a legal document with the ruling of Commissioner Murray L. Smith on the investigation into the activities of the Nanaimo Commonwealth Holding Society, accompanied by a copy of a press release dated August 5, 1998, that announced the adjournment of the Smith Commission Inquiry until the criminal proceedings against Dave Stupich and his associates are concluded. File 445-03, "Table officers Feb 23rd" in the same series, contains a copy of "The Bingo Haul" article from CA Magazine cited in the sources below, printouts from the Smith Commission Website, and a copy of a statement by Glen Clark (January 19, 1996) about the NCHS.

File 445-14 of the same series, "Table officers Nov 16th" contains a memo from Brian Gardiner (Provincial Secretary) on the amount of funds the Party has spent on various court cases since 1996, including the Stockell court case (Friesen v. Hammell), the Paul Ramsey libel case, other recall-related cases, and the Nanaimo Commonwealth Holding Society (NCHS) investigations. It also contains a copy of an "Application of the Special Prosecutor that Directs Indictments Be Preferred in the Matters of Criminal Charges Laid Against David Stupich, Elizabeth Marlow, Marjorie Boggs, Joseph Denofreo and Democrat Publications Ltd." from the NCHS case. The financial summary is reproduced in file 447-10, "Financial documents". Similarly, file 447-11, "Table officers June 14, 2000" contains a "Statement of outstanding external accounts payable as of June 13, 2000" financial document that indicates some of the costs associated with the NCHS.

Other files in this same series that include materials on Stupich or the NCHS include: 445-10 "Table officers MAy 13th" (which may reproduce some of the legal documents found in 444-22); file 445-13 "Table officers Oct 14th"; file 447-21 "June 13-14, 1998 prov. council"; file 448-01 "March 27th Campbell River", file 449-01 "Table officers June 16th".

File 464-05, "Complaints" in the Records of complaints series of this fonds contains correspondence related to a member's request to have Dave Stupich's NDP membership revoked in light of the serious allegations against him at the time.

File 473-21, in the "Records of the Director of Administration," contains a copy of the Hansard report from the March 25, 1988 Budget Debate (2nd Session, 34th Parliament, Official Report of the Debates of the Legislative Assembly), featuring Dave Stupich's response to the BC Provincial Budget, as well as a brief accompanying cover letter from Stupich.

File 474-03 in the same series contains correspondence between Patrice Pratt, BC NDP President, and Dave Stupich, as well as other materials related to the NCHS.

File 475-01 contains a copy of a report prepared by Dyke & Howard, Chartered Accountants, examining the BC NDP's financial records to "determine whether the Party had received any funds" from the NCHS or its related associations and societies.

File 476-01 contains correspondence related to Ronald Parks' investigation of the financial affairs of the Progressive Democratic Alliance and any BC NDP candidates during the 1996 General Election.

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Conservation

Plastic coil spines have been removed from Smith Commission document books for preservation purposes (files 364-01 to 373-02).

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Sources

External sources for the scope and content note:

“David Stupich” (last modified May 2 2011). Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Accessed November 14, 2011 at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Stupich

“Nanaimo Commonwealth Holding Society” (n.d.) Encyclopedia of BC [online]. Harbour Publishing. Accessed November 14, 2011 at http://knowbc.com/ebc/Books/Encyclopedia-of-BC/N/Nanaimo-Commonwealth-Holding-Society

“Stupich, David” (n.d.) Encyclopedia of BC [online]. Harbour Publishing. Accessed November 14, 2011 at http://knowbc.com/ebc/Books/Encyclopedia-of-BC/S/Stupich-David

Bill M 207 – 1995 Nanaimo Commonwealth Holding Society Public Inquiry Act. 1995 Legislative Session: 4th Session, 35th Parliament, First Reading. Accessed online November 14, 2011 at http://www.leg.bc.ca/35th4th/1st_read/mem207-1.htm

Mclaughlin, Paul. “The Bingo Haul.” CA Magazine, December 1997, pp. 17-25. Accessed November 14, 2011 at http://www.camagazine.com/archives/print-edition/1997/camagazine27733.pdf

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