FAIR PLAY IN BYELECTION
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged himself to be a champion of democracy during the last election, promising vigorous and fair nomination battles for all Liberal candidates.
If he was accused of putting his finger on the scale in favour of star candidates he’d recruited then, he’s taken his manipulations of the process to new heights with the byelections taking place in April.
Nowhere is this more apparent than in Montreal’s St-Laurent riding, where borough mayor Alan DeSousa has been excluded as a candidate for the Liberal nomination to replace longtime MP and cabinet minister Stéphane Dion.
DeSousa, who has served the riding in municipal politics for three decades, says the fix is in for former provincial Liberal cabinet minister Yolande James. Despite discussing his candidacy with Dion himself, the Prime Minister’s Office and the local riding association, DeSousa was shocked when a party committee set up to green-light potential nominees turned him down. He was given no concrete reasons why he has been rejected. And when he insisted on filing an appeal of the decision, he was given barely five hours to prepare his case. Then he was left in limbo for days waiting to find out whether his name would be on the ballot, with no list of members, no phone numbers of Liberals to recruit to his side, no means to mount a campaign.
Finally, on Friday, word came that his appeal was denied. Once again, there was no explanation. It’s an insult and an outrage to a candidate of DeSousa’s stature and to voters in St-Laurent.
Liberal party members in Ontario’s Markham-Thornhill riding also complain that a Trudeau-anointed candidate is being given preferential treatment. The difference is Afraj Gill, a 24-year-old who has been door-knocking in the riding for weeks, can run against Mary Ng, Trudeau’s appointments director.
Having to take on a candidate who has the boss’s blessing parachuted in is one thing. Being actively blocked from participating is quite another. Preventing a contender from taking part who might actually have the skills to triumph makes a mockery of local democracy.
It’s not hard to see why James, as a young, experienced woman of colour, would be an asset to Trudeau’s team. She would probably be a shoo-in for cabinet at some point. But she doesn’t live in the riding. DeSousa does, and he is highly qualified, too. It’s difficult to imagine on what grounds he’s being refused.
The Liberal party’s treatment of DeSousa, a highly successful local politician, has been disrespectful and unfair. Even worse, it is profoundly anti-democratic. Canadians expected more of this new government.