Col. Pat Stogran, CAN's New Vets Ombudsman

[The Bread Guy]

Mods - couldn't find this via search, so feel free to dump if already up.

Shared in accordance with the "fair dealing" provisions, Section 29, of the Copyright Act.

Canada's First Veterans Ombudsman Appointed
Veterans Affairs Canada news release 15 Oct 07
News release link - francais

The Honourable Greg Thompson, Minister of Veterans Affairs, announced today that Canada's New Government has fulfilled its promise to better meet the needs of Veterans by appointing a Veterans Ombudsman. The appointment follows Prime Minister Stephen Harper's announcement last April to create a Veterans Bill of Rights and the Veterans Ombudsman Office. Following a public selection process, Colonel Patrick B. Stogran has been named Canada's first Veterans Ombudsman.

"Our Veterans have always been willing to stand up for Canada and we are proud to stand by them now by appointing a Veterans Ombudsman," said Minister Thompson. "With the appointment of Colonel Stogran, we are ensuring that the needs and concerns of our Veterans continue to be treated with the respect they deserve. Our Veterans have earned that."

Colonel Stogran is currently the Associate Director General of Science and Technology Operations at Defence Research and Development Canada. He has a long and distinguished career in the military. Among his many accomplishments, Colonel Stogran was Commanding Officer of troops in Afghanistan and also served in Bosnia.

"The contributions and sacrifices made by our Veterans have helped to make Canada such a great country. As the Veterans Ombudsman, I look forward to addressing the concerns of these brave men and women," said Colonel Stogran.

The Veterans Ombudsman Office is located in the National Capital Region.

For more information on the Veterans Ombudsman, visit www.vac-acc.gc.ca or call, toll free, 1-866-522-2122.



Stogran named veterans' ombudsman
edmontonjournal.com, 15 Oct 07
Article link

EDMONTON - Col. Pat Stogran, the man who led Edmonton-based troops through their first military action in Afghanistan, has been appointed as the country's ombudsman for veterans.

The new position was announced in April by Prime Minister Stephen Harper as part of a promise to better meet the needs of men and women who have served in the Canadian Forces.

Impartial and independent, the ombudsman is charged with assisting veterans to advance their issues and to raise awareness of their needs.

Stogran was chosen for the job following a public selection process, Veterans Affairs Minister Greg Thompson announced today.

Stogran commanded the Edmonton-based 3rd battalion of the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry in 2002, during the American-led effort to remove Afghanistan's Taliban leadership and its terrorist supporters.

He is currently the associate director general of science and technology operations at Defence Research and Development Canada.

 

[Reccesoldier]

Regardless of the man and his many accomplishments I'm not at all sure that an ex-military member (any ex-military member) should ever have been chosen as ombudsman. :-\

 

[Babbling Brooks]

I'm cautiously optimistic about this appointment:

http://toyoufromfailinghands.blogspot.com/2007/10/meet-new-ombudsman.html

The most important role of an Ombudsman, as I see it, is to bring heat and light to a problem.  With a well-known face like Stogran, it will be really hard to handcuff him or bury his reports.  You don't appoint a reasonably high-profile individual and then try to stonewall him - if you wanted to do that, you'd appoint a bureaucrat and save yourself the hassle of playing cat-and-mouse with someone dedicated to the role.

That is, unless Stogran's easily biddable, which I'd suggest isn't his reputation.

We'll see how it all pans out, but I see this as a positive move.

 

[redleafjumper]

I knew Pat Stogran many years ago from summer training at Vernon.  I remember him as a thoughtful, serious fellow and I believe that he will do a good job.  He is high profile, well-known and a good officer.  He should be a real aid to this job.

Cheers,

 

[retiredgrunt45]

Regardless of the man and his many accomplishments I'm not at all sure that an ex-military member (any ex-military member) should ever have been chosen as ombudsman.

I concur.
We need an unbiased approach to this. He hasn't been out of uniform for more than a few years and being a veteran himself, he's just a tad bit to close to the issue.

A civilian appointee would have made better sense.

 

[the 48th regulator]

Here here,

I sure hope he does not tow the party line, and diffuse fault towards the Military, ergo the Governemnt, when investigating situations....

Where is André Marin when you need him?

dileas

tess

 

[The Bread Guy]

Reviving necrothread with news that Stogran's term will not be renewed - this, via the Canadian Press:

Canada's outspoken veterans ombudsman won't be re-appointed by the Conservative government.

Sources have told The Canadian Press retired colonel Pat Stogran, who commanded the country's first battle group in Kandahar in 2002, was notified earlier this week that his term won't be renewed.

He apparently ran afoul of the federal government in his criticism of the bureaucracy, which he accused of being more interested in saving money that helping veterans.

News of his impending dismissal went off like a bombshell in the veteran's community on Friday because in Stogran many former soldiers found a kindred spirit, someone who understood their concerns.

His term comes to an end in November.

A spokeswoman for Veteran Affairs Minister Jean-Pierre Blackburn's office would not confirm or deny Stogran's impending departure.

"Sorry, but we do not comment on appointments," Flora Fahr said in an email note late Friday.

Reached on his cell phone, the ombudsman also would not comment and referred all questions to the minister's office ....

 

[Dennis Ruhl]

I vote for a civilian with an extreme lack of understanding of things military and a great understanding of humans in general.

 

[Bin-Rat]

Partial Story Clip,

OTTAWA - Canada's outspoken veterans ombudsman won't be re-appointed by the Conservative government.

"Sources have told The Canadian Press retired colonel Pat Stogran, who commanded the country's first battle group in Kandahar in 2002, was notified earlier this week that his term won't be renewed.

He apparently ran afoul of the federal government in his criticism of the bureaucracy, which he accused of being more interested in saving money that helping veterans.

News of his impending dismissal went off like a bombshell in the veteran's community on Friday because in Stogran many former soldiers found a kindred spirit, someone who understood their concerns."

For full story
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/100813/health/health_veterans_ombudsman_fired

 

[jasatmilnet]

iper:

Must not offend Mr "hair in the fridge" at the top!

Gawd help our vets... wimpy minister... nasty Vets Charter...

Cut and run!

 

[Franko]

iper:

Must not offend Mr "hair in the fridge" at the top!

Gawd help our vets... wimpy minister... nasty Vets Charter...

Cut and run!

Not so much the man at the top...but the bureaucrats that have languished in the system for the past 10 years and were a bit pissed off that Strogan spoke his mind.

Regards

 

[jasatmilnet]

Steady on mate! My experience of the VA staff (while I've been engaged in Service Officer tasks) has been nothing but positive... helped us navigate a cumbersome system. The notion that our vets are dying off, and so why not start shutting VA down as becoming redundant... well that idea certainly devolved from on high... Bosnia and Afghanistan... no vets from either of those... no wounded members... no PTSD sufferers...
As goes the King... so goes the Kingdom in my view...

best regards

 

[Franko]

Steady on mate! My experience of the VA staff (while I've been engaged in Service Officer tasks) has been nothing but positive... helped us navigate a cumbersome system. The notion that our vets are dying off, and so why not start shutting VA down as becoming redundant... well that idea certainly devolved from on high... Bosnia and Afghanistan... no vets from either of those... no wounded members... no PTSD sufferers...
As goes the King... so goes the Kingdom in my view...

best regards

I know of literally dozens that are suffering and are going through VAC....I can only surmise that the actual count is in the thousand(s) or more for either PTSD or physical injuries from both conflicts, only to be stonewalled by the bureaucracy in VAC.

Regards

 

[jollyjacktar]

The Col. spoke his mind and I cannot disagree with what he said.  I am sure there will be a push for some spineless yes man to take his place so the screwing can continue and accelerate.

 

[pbi]

I vote for a civilian with an extreme lack of understanding of things military and a great understanding of humans in general.

And I vote that you start thinking a bit more before you post things.

You either love Pat Stogran or you hate him: there isn't too much middle ground with him. I have had the great pleasure to know and serve with Pat Stogran since 1983 (3 PPCLI, 1 PPCLI). An absolutely hard core soldier, martial arts expert and probably the most devoted family man  I've met. He always demanded that his people perform, but he always demanded much more of himself. He led soldiers in combat, and  lost four of them. He has "seen the elephant".

As long as I've known Pat, he has challenged authority and spoken out loudly when he thought things were wrong. He hated injustice and unethical behaviour, but he often had a firecracker temper that made people keep their distance. He regularly banged heads with most of his bosses. This is probably why he never made it farther than full Colonel. Although I've not always agreed with some of things he's said, both when he was in the Army and after he got out and became the VAC Ombudsman, Pat was a fighter and an ***-kicker. I'm sure he was too much of a bulldog for some of the bureaucrats in VAC, who are facing a whole new wave of young vets who are far more demanding, and much more media- savvy, than the previous generations of VAC clients who are rapidly dying off.

In other words, VERY well suited to be the VAC Ombudsman.

Cheers

 

[the 48th regulator]

I vote for a civilian with an extreme lack of understanding of things military and a great understanding of humans in general.

And I vote that you start thinking a bit more before you post things.

And I say you do the same, as your bias, due to personally knowing him clouds your views.  In the three years he was Ombudsman, what has he achieved?  The first I heard of him making any form of ripples was with his town hall meetings.  The ones he started in the last bit of his tenure....

Dennis is bang on in his views.  Someone the likes of Andre Marin, did extreme wonders as the first Military Ombudsman, with absolutely no military back ground. He has also done the same with the Ontario Government.

You need someone that know how to do the political tango, is not tainted with any form of bias, and has teeth to stand up to the powers that be when he/she has made a decision.

I second Dennis' post.

dileas

tess

 

[pbi]

I don't.

And since I'm not party to all the internal machinations of VAC,  I'm not in the position of being able to judge what fights he has won and lost: I doubt many of us will. Perhaps others know more about this. But knowing him, I'm quite sure he never shrank from a fight, and if I wanted somebody in my corner (even if I don't always see eye-to-eye with him) it would be Pat. Doubtless, he will be replaced by a nonentity more to the Govt's liking.



Cheers

 

[The Bread Guy]

This from the Canadian Press:

Former soldiers from different parts of the country are gearing up to battle the impending removal of the veterans' ombudsman.

Several veterans, representing different interests, were planning a news conference Tuesday in Ottawa to protest the Conservative government's decision not to appoint Pat Stogran to a second term as the voice of injured soldiers and RCMP members.

Dennis Manuge, who has fought the clawback of long-term disability benefits all of the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, said the writing is on the wall and veterans will not let him go without a fight.

"It just seems everybody in Ottawa that tries to do their job and let the government officials and bureaucrats know what's failing and what's wrong and what needs improvement are being canned," said Manuge, a former army corporal who suffered a debilitating back injury in 2000.

He's one of up to half-a-dozen veterans who will speak and lend their support to Stogran, a former ground commander in Afghanistan whose appointment three years ago as the first-ever veterans' ombudsman was hailed by Conservatives as the beginning of new era in the treatment of retired soldiers.

(....)

Liberal MP Dan McTeague, who fought for improved benefits for wounded soldiers, said ditching Stogran would be a colossal setback for veterans and accused the government of wanting to shoot the messenger.

"The Conservative message appears to be: 'You become a lapdog, not a watch dog,'" said McTeague.

"I'm absolutely appalled, as I think most Canadians are, that the Conservatives are throwing away the very person they appointed, someone who had some tough news to tell them. We didn't appoint him. They did, and he happened to tell them something they found inconvenient."

(....)

 

[ModlrMike]

I question how much of this issue is being driven by the bureaucrats, and how much by the Government?

 

[dapaterson]

Someone the likes of Andre Marin, did extreme wonders as the first Military Ombudsman, with absolutely no military back ground. He has also done the same with the Ontario Government.

Andre Marin is a self-indulgent glory hound, who funnels sole-sourced contracts to a preferred mentor, and who never let regulations that were clearly communicated get in the way of a good story.

His tenure as CF Ombudsman was marked by extremely high levels of staff turnover - hardly the hallmark of a leader to emulate.

http://www.thestar.com/news/investigations/article/815727

Three former employees and one current staffer say Ombudsman André Marin and his trusted managers are petty tyrants with bizarre and strict rules on office etiquette. In letters to government officials and in two complaints to the Human Rights Tribunal, workers allege racial discrimination by the Ombudsman’s Office, which has denied discrimination against employees.

Marin has been dubbed “Napoleon” by the fearful employees. Nevertheless they put their names to the allegations.