Arthur Porter ( physician ) Arthur T . Porter IV , PC , MBBChir ( born in 1956 in Freetown , Sierra Leone ) is a Canadian physician . He served as Chair of the Security Intelligence Review Committee of Canada which reviews the activities of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service . He was appointed to the position by Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper on September 3 , 2008 , and along with that appointment , was made a Privy Councillor , giving him the title , " The Honourable " . He resigned in December 2011 , three months before the end of his contract , after the " National Post " published revelations of his business dealings with international lobbyist and close ties to the president of Sierra Leone . Porter ' s questionable business dealings and foreign connections included his relationship with Ari Ben - Menashe , a Montreal - based businessman and an ex - Israeli international lobbyist and arms dealer , who was arrested and charged in the United States for illegally attempting to sell military transport airplanes to Iran . He was succeeded by Chuck Strahl . Early life . His father , Arthur T . Porter III is a noted Sierra Leone Creole historian and anthropologist of African - American , Jamaican , and European descent . Porter received his early education in Sierra Leone and Kenya , East Africa . After attending the University of Sierra Leone , he transferred to the University of Cambridge in England , where he received his B . A . degree in anatomy , Master in natural sciences and his Medical degree . Later , Porter earned his Master from the University of Tennessee and certificates in Management from Harvard University and the University of Toronto . He was also bestowed a Fellowship and Diplomate status in Healthcare Administration from the American Academy of Medical Administrators . Career . Following his training in Medical and Radiation Oncology , Porter assumed several senior positions in Canada , including that of Senior Specialist at the University of Alberta , Chief of Radiation Oncology at the London Regional Cancer Centre ( University of Western Ontario ) and Chairman of Oncology at Victoria Hospital , Ontario , Canada . In 1991 , he was appointed Radiation Oncologist - in - chief , Professor and Chairman of the Detroit Medical Center and Wayne State University . During the subsequent five years , Porter accepted several other concurrent positions , including Director of Clinical Care at the Karmanos Cancer Institute and Associate Dean at the Wayne State University School of Medicine . Porter ’ s extensive international background includes medical practice , business and academic leadership positions in Canada , Europe , Africa and the United States . He has also served as a Consultant to the World Health Organization and World Bank , and worked to establish international research and treatment programs in Turkey , India , Yemen and the Gulf Cooperation Council , the Caribbean , Brazil , Liberia , and throughout Europe . Porter opened the first state - of - the - art cancer centre in the Commonwealth of the Bahamas known as the Cancer Centre . In 1999 , Porter was named CEO of the Detroit Medical Center , a US $ 1 . 6 billion health system , which is also one of the United States ’ largest urban systems and the largest non - government employer in Detroit . The current success at the Detroit Medical Center is tied to Porter ’ s commitment to streamlining the cost of care , developing the largest outsourced technology contract in the USA , and implementing lean - time management programs and training to the 14 , 000 - plus - employee organization . During his time in Detroit , Porter served as a Vice - Chairman of the Detroit Chamber of Commerce , the largest municipal chamber in the USA . In 2001 , U . S . President George W . Bush appointed Porter to the Presidential Commission charged with reviewing the health care provided by the Department of Defense and the Veterans Administration . In August 2002 , Michigan Governor John Engler appointed Porter to a four - year term as Chairman of Michigan ’ s Hospital Commission . In February 2004 , Porter was appointed Director General and CEO of the McGill University Health Centre in Montréal , Canada , one of Canada ' s largest academic health centres engaged in a multi - billion - dollar redevelopment project and an award - winning public - private partnership . He completed a second term in December 2011 , handing over the leadership reins after helping the academic health centre achieve major milestones , including the largest grant to a single institution from the Canada Foundation for Innovation ( nearly $ 100 million ) that was matched by the Quebec government and supported by donors to bring research funding to $ 250 million , and the April 1 , 2010 groundbreaking of the future Glen site , now well under construction . He served concurrently as the President of the Réseau universitaire intégré en santé McGill ( McGill RUIS ) , an integrated health delivery network serving 1 . 7 million people . Making the improvement of health care a priority since his early career , Dr Porter shared his perspective in various forums , including the Canadian Club of Montreal . He also formed the MUHC ' s Institute of Strategic Analysis and Innovation , an in - house policy think tank , with a view to encouraging national debate and constructive changes . In January 2012 , the MUHC held recognition events to thank Dr Porter for his invaluable contributions . Achievements . Porter is a Past President of the American Brachytherapy Society ; the American College of Oncology Administrators ; the American Cancer Society ( Great Lakes ) ; and the American College of Radiation Oncology . He has also served as Chairman of the Board of Chancellors of the American College of Radiation Oncology and on the Board of Scientific Counselors of the National Cancer Institute ( USA ) . Between 2006 and 2008 , Porter served on the Governing Council of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research ( CIHR ) , which oversees government funding for health - related research in Canada . In 2008 , Porter was appointed to a life term as a member of the Queen ' s Privy Council for Canada while Prime Minister Stephen Harper appointed him to Canada ’ s Security Intelligence Review Committee ( SIRC ) . He has been awarded Fellowships by the American College of Radiation Oncology ; the Royal Society of Medicine ; the American College of Oncology Administrators ; the American College of Radiology ; and has received testimonial resolutions from the City of Detroit , the County of Wayne and the State of Michigan . He has been honoured with the Award for Excellence from the Detroit Medical Society , the Healthcare Executive of the Year award and the Harry Schubin M . D . Statesman in Healthcare Administration award from the American Academy of Medical Administrators , among others . In 2000 , he was also selected to be one of six ‘ Michiganders of the year ’ . Porter has been on the Editorial Board of 13 scientific journals and has to his credit more than 300 scholarly works in peer - reviewed journals , chapters in books and in conference proceedings . He is credited with introducing several novel concepts to radiation therapy . He is a frequent speaker at universities and medical conferences throughout the world . His major areas of academic endeavour relate to the medical uses of radioactive isotopes and the treatment of prostate cancer . Term at McGill University . In November 2012 , McGill University filed a lawsuit seeking repayment of $ 317 , 154 which he owes the university , and indicating that Porter responded to a letter in October demanding payment of the outstanding amount within one week only with a three - line email , and that they have not heard from him since then . Following the controversy over the unpaid loans from McGill University , the university describes Porter as " of unknown address " , with McGill ' s suit indicating he gave his current addresses as post office boxes in the Bahamas and in Sierra Leone . The National Post reported in November 2012 that he was receiving treatment for a " self - diagnosed " cancer in the Cancer Centre that he has established in the Bahamas and of which he is Managing Director . It also gave a link to a story in the " Turks and Caicos " Magazine , which refers to his establishing cancer centres both in the Turks and Caicos and Bahamas in conjunction with his long - time friend and business partner Prof Karol Sikora , who is Director of Medical Oncology at the Bahamas Cancer Centre ; . in addition to their mutual cancer business interests in the British Isles . Criminal charges and arrest . On 27 February 2013 , an arrest warrant was issued in relation to the McGill University Health Centre scandal . Porter and his wife Pamela Mattock were detained by Interpol agents in Panama on May 27 , 2013 , after an investigation by the Sureté du Québec , the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the International Criminal Police Organization ( Interpol ) . He faces charges in Canada of fraud , conspiracy to commit government fraud , abuse of trust , secret commissions and laundering the proceeds of a crime . Porter ' s wife is facing charges of laundering the proceeds of a crime and for conspiracy . The fraud against the Quebec government is related to his alleged role in the handling of a $ 1 . 3 - billion Montreal hospital construction and maintenance contract . The contract was awarded to SNC - Lavalin Group Inc . , the engineering giant deeply involved in the Quebec corruption scandal . At the time of the alleged fraud , from 2008 to 2011 , Dr . Porter director general of the McGill University Health Centre ( MUHC ) in Montreal , Quebec , being in charge of one of Canada ’ s largest health - care providers . He was appointed to the position in 2004 . He was also a member of Air Canada ’ s board of directors . Porter and Mattock reportedly intend to oppose extradition from Panama to Canada . Porter is claiming diplomatic immunity on the basis that he was travelling via Panama on a diplomatic mission to Antigua and Barbuda , on behalf of the government of Sierra Leone , according to his lawyer Ricardo Bilonick Paredes ( formerly known as Ricardo Bilonick ) . However , the Sierra Leone government says he is a goodwill ambassador and thus has no diplomatic immunity .