Back on track?

>> Dan Philip vows to rebuild the Mathieu Da Costa corporation--and prosecute corrupt officers

by Noemi Lopinto

Montreal's only corporation created to finance black businesses is wobbling back to stability after a painful episode of corruption and mismanagement, according to new president Dan Philip.

Created seven years ago, the Mathieu Da Costa Business Development Corporation was named after the first black man brought to New France, by Samuel de Champlain in 1605. Da Costa is mainly financed by the provincial and federal governments, as well as by the Fonds de solidarité of the Féderation des travailleurs du Québec (FTQ).

But its aim to help start businesses in the black community was tarnished by longtime rumours of financial mismanagement. And these came to a head at last June's Annual General Meeting, which saw accusations of corruption, conflict with the FTQ and between board members. After the meeting was over, the executive director, administrative assistant and president of the board had been fired.

According to an article by Montreal journalist Egbert Gaye in the July 1 edition of Community Contact, Da Costa's year-end financial statement for 1999 showed $389,058 in operating expenses, while its revenues only totalled $236,400. The statement also shows $38,000 in expenditures related to employees--which Da Costa is now in litigation to recover--and $100,000 spent on salaries and fringe benefits for a corporation with a staff of only two full-time employees.

The irregularites uncovered include an ex-employee buying a car under the company name and paying off a credit card debt with company money. "Da Costa's house is dirty," Gaye quotes Philip as saying.

But Gaye and other members of the local black community think Philip is the right man to clean it up. Philip--who became the new president of the board in a unanimous decision on June 13--is a human rights activist and president of the Black Coalition of Quebec. He hopes to restore order and faith in Da Costa: "This is a phenomenon that permeates our society, of irresponsibility, of fraudulent conduct and abuse of power. That being said, this is the only such institution that we in the black community have. It is our responsibility to manage it and manage it correctly because if we lose it, we lose everything."

He says that despite the setback, Da Costa has done some good work, supporting the recent creation of Nacara Cosmetics, Garderie Manyi, and Plate-formes de recherche virtuelles F. Fidele Inc.

But Philip says the chaos and mismanagement at Da Costa is particularly painful for a community in desperate need of role models for success. "We are looking at a 40 per cent unemployment rate in the community and an over-representation in the social system. This is why it is very important to create an economic momentum, and a reference point for people to feel they can reach out to something." Philip would not identify the members of the previous administration. But he vowed, "All those who committed criminal acts and abused their power must be held responsible. They all failed the black community." :

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