Bob Dechert’s Message in Regards to the,”PC Party of Ontario, Nomination, Mississauga Erin-Mills”

Bob Dechert’s Message in Regards to the,”PC Party of Ontario, Nomination, Mississauga Erin-Mills”
January 17/17

Dear Friends,
Over the last several days, many of you have contacted me to ask me for my opinion regarding which of the remaining 3 nomination candidates in the PC Party of Ontario Mississauga Erin-Mills nomination contest you should support at the nomination meeting scheduled for Sunday January 22, 2017.

I would not presume to tell any Party member who they should vote for.  It is your decision and yours alone.

I hope that each of the candidates will reach out to you in the next few days and demonstrate to you that:

a. they are committed to the principles, objectives and long term success of the Party and that they believe in and are able to credibly promote the policies and values of the Party to the voters;

b. they possess the requisite knowledge, skills and experience to represent you and all of the people of Mississauga Erin-Mills in the Legislature of Ontario; and

c. they have sufficient understanding, through personal experience, of the history of our City of Mississauga (including its current and future infrastructure requirements) and the concerns and needs of our neighbours to equip them to be the best possible advocates for all of the people of Mississauga Erin-Mills to the Government of Ontario.

I would also recommend that you conduct your own research by searching the names of each of the 3 remaining candidates on the internet to learn what each of them, and others, have said about their respective qualifications for the position of Party Candidate and MPP for Mississauga Erin-Mills.  If you have time, review their respective websites and biographies and ask them questions about issues that are important to you.

I have serious concerns, however, about the campaign that appears to have been conducted, directly or indirectly, by or on behalf of, Mr. Nadeem Shaikh.

I understand that he has denied knowledge of, or responsibility for, any Facebook messages or video messages posted on the internet by a Mississauga resident named Farina Siddiqui which mention him or his campaign. In my view, the message posted by Ms. Siddiqui in support of Mr. Shaikh’s nomination campaign violates multiple provisions of the Party’s constitution (including the requirement to pay one’s own membership fee).

More importantly, the author’s solicitation solely to one group in our community to join our Party with the intended goal of ensuring that each of the candidates for the Liberal, NDP and PC Parties are all members of that same group violates our Party’s commitment to inclusiveness and cultural diversity pursuant to section 2.1 (h) of the Party’s constitution.

In addition, Ms. Siddiqui’s message also counsels prospective members to return their membership application forms without completing the fee payment section thereof.

In my view, any membership applications wholly or partially completed in response to this message do not meet the requirements of the Party’s constitution.

Additionally, I understand that someone attempted to hire the services of a female voice actor to record a message directed exclusively at one group within our community, ostensibly by, or on behalf of, Mr. Shaikh’s campaign.

The solicitation for the services of a voice actor posted on the voice123.com website refers to a 430 word script, however, the view-able portion of the webpage in question, contains only a partial script of approximately 82 words.  The words posted on that webpage are:

“Our Muslim community has recently witnessed the importance and impact of political engagement. In the federal election our participation was fundamental to protecting the Canadian Muslim identity of our children, to ensure that they can practice freely while loving their country. But the lesson for all of us from this experience is that we must continue to participate politically to bring religious, social and economic change to many issues that impact us every day and will impact our children in the future.”

I have not heard a recording of this message, however, I understand that an automated telephone voice message closely approximating these words and more, has been received by some residents of Mississauga. A copy of this recorded message should have been deposited with the Canadian Radio and Television Commission under applicable law and maybe obtained from the CRTC.

I understand that that Mr. Shaikh has denied any knowledge of, or responsibility for, the above referenced voice message.

You should also know that the Board of Directors of the Party’s Mississauga Erin-Mills Electoral District Association appointed a local candidate search committee (“CSC”) pursuant to the Party’s nomination rules to conduct a search for potential, credible candidates to seek the Party’s nomination as its candidate.

The CSC interviewed each of the 5 candidates that eventually came forward including myself.

I understand that the CSC prepared a report with recommendations which was then delivered to the Party’s Provincial Nominations Committee for consideration.

I have not received or read a copy of this report.

In my view, all members of the Party in Mississauga Erin-Mills have a right to receive and review a complete copy of the local candidate search committee report and their recommendations prior to the nomination meeting.

I wish you all the very best in your deliberations and participation in this important democratic process.

Best regards,
Bob Dechert