Sen. Mike Duffy spent most of his final day under examination by his defence lawyer detailing the circumstances in February 2013 that led up to the former prime ministerâs Chief of Staff Nigel Wright paying $90,000 of Duffyâs questionable Senate expenses on his behalf.
Duffy faces 31 charges, including one count of bribery related to the payment. He has pleaded not guilty to all.
The former Conservative senator insisted that he never broke residency or expenditure rules, but was pressured into repaying the expenses to help out the prime minister, who was taking a beating from then Opposition Leader Tom Mulcair in question period.
Here are five key quotations from Duffyâs Tuesday testimony in an Ottawa courtroom, where CTV Ottawa News Bureau Correspondent Katie Simpson was live-tweeting.
Duffy said the prime minister told him âNigel will make the arrangementsâ
The senator described approaching Prime Minister Stephen Harper after a caucus meeting and telling him he was âbeing lynched.â
Duffy said the prime minister agreed that he didnât break the rules, but that âthe rules are inexplicable to the (Conservative) base.â
Duffy also said Harper told him, âNigel (Wright) will make the arrangements.â
The former prime minister has maintained he didnât know Wright had written the cheque until the story broke in the media, which was first reported by Âéśš´ŤĂ˝ in May 2013.
Duffy said he was âordered to do this by the Prime Minister of Canadaâ
Duffy said he never intended to do anything wrong by going along with the plan to repay the expenses.
He said he never benefited from the money, and that it was all âa political stunt.â
Duffy said the pressure on him was great, and that he had even received verbal instructions from Harper that he must go ahead with it. "I was ordered to do this by the prime minister of Canada."
Duffy said he felt like a North Korean POW
The senator said he was getting so much pressure from the prime ministerâs top staffers to go on television and ârepeat lines" that he felt like he was "in a North Korean prison camp."
Duffy said he was âbeggingâ top aide Ray Novak not force him to say he would repay.
âWhen you repay there's a presumption I owed money,â he said. âWhy would I want to put a stain on my reputation, my kids, wife grandkids? I'm not a cheat, I'm not a thief, I don't break the rules.â
Duffy said Jim Flaherty called PMO staffers âFâing unbelievableâ
Duffy described an âicy meetingâ where Wright told him the repayment was ânot a discussion.â
Right after leaving the meeting, Duffy said he ran into Finance Minister Jim Flaherty and told him they had âdecreedâ that he was to pay it back.
âHe just looks at me and says âMike, these people are Fâing unbelievableâ.â
Duffy said he was coached to lie about where he got the $90,000
The senator said that he had âone last card to play,â while trying to convince Nigel Wright he shouldnât pay back the money, which was telling Wright he didn't have the cash to do so. But Wright told him not to worry about it.
Duffy also said he told the prime ministerâs issues management chief Chris Woodcock that he was taking out a Royal Bank line of credit for home renovations, which Woodcock called âperfectâ considering the questions the media would ask.
Duffy said Woodcock suggested he say âRoyal Bankâ when asked where he got the money.
Woodcock testified in August that he did not know Wright had written a personal cheque, and that he missed a line in a March 8, 2013 email from Wright that read: âFor you only: I am personally covering Duffy's $90K.â
CTV reporter Katie Simpson was live-blogging from the court earlier today. Read her updates below:
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