The general who coordinated the vaccination campaign against Covid-19 in Canada since November, has left his post in Public Health due to a military investigation targeting him, the Ministry of Defense announced on Friday, May 14.
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Former commander of the NATO mission in Iraq, General Dany Fortin left his post of coordinator "
pending the results of a military investigation,
" the ministry said in a brief statement, without further details. The current acting chief of staff, General Wayne Eyre, "will
review the next steps with Major General Fortin,
" the statement said.
General Fortin was appointed last November by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to head a new National Operations Center, to coordinate the logistics of the "
largest vaccination in the history of the country
". The Canadian army is responsible, in collaboration with the public health agency, for the distribution of doses of vaccine in remote communities of this immense country. General Fortin, a seasoned officer, had also been deployed in Bosnia, with the UN peacekeepers, as well as in Afghanistan where he led the Canadian troops.
The Canadian military has been shaken for several months by a series of investigations into high-ranking officers targeted by allegations of sexual misconduct, including former Chief of the Defense Staff, retired General Jonathan Vance .
Jonathan Vance retired earlier this year before the allegations, which he denies, were made public.
His successor, Admiral Art McDonald, also left office a few weeks after his appointment, following the opening of an investigation into similar charges.
At the end of April, Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan instructed former prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal (ICT) Louise Arbor to conduct an independent investigation into the handling of cases of sexual harassment within the army.