Re: “Advocates unsuccessful in urging NDP government to halt Quest land deal,” published online Aug. 16.
One of Quest University’s slogans was “question everything,” and I applaud reporter Bob Mackin, and his sources, for illustrating how and why we should apply this motto to Quest itself.
Despite its explicit mission to shine the light of truth on the world — a mission I served as a member of the faculty from 2018 to 2023 — the institution often kept its own business cloaked in secrecy, even from its employees and students.
While Quest is no longer present in Squamish, there is a continuing lack of transparency and accountability regarding the disposition of the campus and the land on which it sits. In the spirit of “question[ing] everything,” I’d like to articulate some questions that all Squamish residents — and all British Columbians — should be asking.
First, as Mackin reports, Quest’s sale of the campus to Primacorp in 2020 was triggered when the Vanchorverve charitable foundation demanded that Quest repay a debt of approximately $26 million (the figure reported by Chief journalist Steven Chua on 18/12/2020).
This prompts the question: How does a university — or anyone — end up in debt to a charitable foundation? How (and from whom) did Quest borrow that money in the first place? Aren’t charities in the business of donating money, not lending it for profit?
Second, regarding the purchase of the campus from Primacorp for $63 million: as Mackin reported on Aug. 10, Primacorp bought the campus from Quest in 2020 for $43 million. What did Primacorp do, in this brief window of time, to add $20 million to the value of the campus?
I was present on campus during that period, and I do not recall any significant investments being made into the physical plant.
Third, where did all the money end up?
As reported in The Chief (Dec. 18, 2020), there is significant evidence suggesting that private individuals and corporations enriched themselves at the expense of Quest University and the public. Some of these “charitable foundations” have since had their registration as such revoked by CRA. Were Quest’s faculty and students participating, as we all believed, in an innovative model of higher education?
Or, were we merely dupes, unwittingly serving as a front for a sophisticated tax fraud operation?
To be clear: I do not oppose Capilano University’s purchase of the campus. I welcome Capilano to Squamish, and, if anything, I wish they had arrived sooner. Many faculty and students hoped that CapU or another public university would purchase the campus in 2020. I also applaud CapU’s plan to use the Squamish campus to serve Squamish residents.
Quest never seemed to prioritize the local population, to its own detriment.
Nevertheless, we should question: Why is the public on the hook for $48 million? How did Quest become a debtor to its donors? If those donors were really lenders, why were they allowed to claim tax exemptions? Why is our ostensibly socialist government ignoring evidence of shady transactions that ultimately shift public assets into private hands? We deserve — and should demand — more accountability, transparency, and consultation.
James McKinnon
Squamish
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