Current investigation by regulatory commission is undermined by conflicts of interest, and the commission failed to complete an investigation in 2018

RCMP also has questionable record of investigating such activities

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Tuesday, February 3, 2026

OTTAWA – Today, Democracy Watch joined with the Save PEI Association in calling on all parties in the PEI legislature to work together with the provincial government to stop the current Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission (IRAC) investigation of land purchases and other activities in PEI by the Great Enlightenment Buddhist Institute (GEBIS) and Great Wisdom Buddhist Institute (GWBI) in the past 15 years.

Instead, the government should establish a fully independent, fully-empowered, expert and well-resourced public inquiry, to investigate the activities of GEBIS and GWBI, which operate under the umbrella of the multi-billion-dollar, multi-national, integrated monastic and business conglomerate headed by Bliss & Wisdom Monastery Corporation, which multiple reports have alleged has been infiltrated and taken over by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

The two citizen groups also called on the PEI government to establish a second provincial public inquiry, in coordination with the federal authorities, also staffed by a truly independent commissioner and investigators having the expertise and resources required to investigate the national security and potential criminal issues and the broader issues of land purchases by foreigners across Canada, and to recommend solutions, as was done by the Cullen Commission in British Columbia.

The current IRAC investigation is compromised by conflicts of interest because IRAC’s entire senior management all worked at various times during their career with the same law firm that has for the past 14 years represented GWBI, the very institution now being investigated. As well, current IRAC Chair Pamela Williams was the Chief of Staff of the PEI Premier from 2019 to 2025 when the provincial Cabinet and government were approving development permits for the Bliss & Wisdom organizations, and making decisions about IRAC’s recommendations for approvals of transfers of land by non-residents and corporations under the Lands Protection Act, including transactions potentially under investigation.

As well, Scott MacKenzie, the former Chair of IRAC who oversaw the first IRAC investigation into these land transfers in 2018, retired and joined the law firm advising GEBIS and Bliss & Wisdom.  It appears also that IRAC has assigned only one labour lawyer as special counsel for its current investigation.

In addition, a PEI legislative committee determined in October that IRAC didn’t complete its 2018 investigation into the land purchases by GEBIS and GWBI.

While the PEI government in October called on the RCMP and FINTRAC to investigate the land purchases and other activities of GEBIS and GWBI, the RCMP’s past track record on investigating the activities of these organizations is weak.  The RCMP issued a press announcement in response to the PEI government’s request for an investigation claiming that it investigated similar accusations previously and found no wrongdoing. However, the RCMP didn’t provide any details, and no one with relevant information was ever contacted by the RCMP.  The RCMP has unfortunately also closed several active investigations in PEI involving immigration fraud and related issues, without any explanation.

Former CSIS and RCMP investigators have also called for a public inquiry.

For both public inquiries to be independent and effective:

1. The inquiry commissioner (or, even better, three commissioners) must not have even an appearance of a conflict of interest concerning the matters to be investigated, and should come from outside of the province, and should be appointed through a merit-based candidate review process;
2. The inquiry must also be staffed with investigators who also must not have even an appearance of a conflict of interest concerning the matters to be investigated, and should also come from outside of the province, and must have the necessary financial, legal and international qualifications and expertise, and be given the funding and technical resources needed to complete a timely, full and detailed investigation of the situation;
3. In addition, given the international structure and activities of the organizations, the inquiry commissioners must retain a forensic investigations firm with international expertise and reach that also must not have even an appearance of a conflict of interest concerning the matters to be investigated and should also come from outside of the province, and;
4. The public should be allowed to participate as intervenors.

“The recent discovery that the long awaited IRAC report from 2018 does not exist and the public discussions surrounding the leadership elections taking place in PEI brought the islanders’ long standing concern about land issues and the Buddhist landholding into sharp focus. It became clear that IRAC had lost the confidence of the public. The position of our organization and its members is that only a fully independent, fully transparent public inquiry staffed by experts with the skills  and resources to investigate a multibillion-dollar multinational religious and business conglomerate, will arrive at the truth and ensure the islanders truly understand the plans of this organization,” said Jan Matejcek of the Save PEI Association.

“The PEI government, its land transfer approval commission and the RCMP have all failed for the past 15 years to stop land purchases in the province and other questionable activities by organizations allegedly connected to China’s government, and a fully independent, fully empowered, expert and well-resourced public inquiry is the only effective way to investigate why this has happened, and what can be done to finally reverse this land grab and stop these activities,” said Duff Conacher, Co-founder of Democracy Watch.  “A second fully independent, fully empowered, expert and well-resourced public inquiry is also needed into land purchases by foreigners across Canada and other forms of foreign interference in Canada’s economy.”

The Hogue Inquiry into Foreign Interference in Federal Electoral Processes and Democratic Institutions issued a negligently weak, cover-up final report at the end of January recommending only a few of many key changes needed to stop foreign interference in Canadian political processes.

Another comprehensive bill is needed to close the many huge loopholes ignored by Commissioner Hogue, and left open by Bill C-70, which was passed by the House and Senate in five weeks in May-June 2024, but is full of loopholes.  More than 20 months later, the federal Liberal government has still failed to establish the Foreign Influence Registry (FIR) to require foreign agents to disclose their activities, and failed to establish the new Foreign Influence Transparency (FIT) Commissioner (who, under Bill C-70, will lack independence and key investigation powers and public accountability requirements).

Click here to see the Backgrounder that summarizes all the loopholes and weak enforcement problems that make foreign interference legal and easy to do across Canada at every level of government.

Click here to see summary list of 17 key changes that need to be made to stop foreign interference.

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FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

Jan Matejcek, Save PEI Association
Cell: 902-394-3733
Email: [email protected]

Duff Conacher, Co-founder of Democracy Watch
Tel: (613) 241-5179
Cell: 416-546-3443
Email: [email protected]

Democracy Watch’s Stop Foreign Interference in Canadian Politics Campaign