To expand on a topic broached in a post yesterday, if recent legal actions by the Tories are any indication, the Calgary-Montrose Progressive Conservative Constituency Association may be a victim of a culture of litigation in Alberta's current governing party.
I'm pretty sure that I'd be mighty pissed if I were a member of a political party who's legal agenda generated news articles like:
This of course is in regards to the recent victory of the Alberta Progressive Conservative Association over a group of its volunteers in the east Calgary constituency of Calgary-Montrose.
The provincial Progressive Conservatives have won a prolonged court battle against some of their own members, a ruling that further muddies when or if the Tories will nominate a candidate in the riding of Calgary-Montrose.Because of the legal battle (and probably with the distraction of potentially losing their homes because of the PC Party) the Calgary-Montrose PC constituency executive has yet to hold a nomination meeting, but has scheduled a meeting for February 9 in the wake of Ed Stelmach's threat to appoint a candidate of his choosing in Calgary-Montrose if the constituency association didn't act.
But the decision also leaves several volunteers of the local riding association on the hook for hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal bills and could result in foreclosures on their homes.
With current Calgary-Montrose MLA Hung Pham declaring that he will not seek re-election, Calgary-Montrose is without a PC candidate. Pham, first elected in 1993, earned the dubious title of the MIA MLA for his less than perfect record of attendance in the Alberta Legislature. Unlike his record of attendance in the Alberta Legislature, Pham didn't hide his feelings about the matter in a recent letter:
With an Alberta provincial election call only days away, it appears that all is not well on the good ship S.S. Stelmach.MLA Hung Pham won't seek a fifth term as the Progressive Conservative candidate in Calgary-Montrose, blasting his own party on the eve of an election for lying, making "poor decisions" and taking "dishonourable" actions.
In a letter to his constituency board last weekend, the Tory backbencher scolded the party for doing nothing to help local volunteers with their huge legal bills -- and accuses the party of having "lied" about its role in constituency politics.
He questioned how the party handled "millions of dollars" of its own funds.
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6 comments:
tsk tsk Dave...selective quoting.
""I still wholeheartedly support conservative principles, and after all of this, still believe in the Progressive Conservative Party of Alberta," -Pham
"the party advised the Montrose volunteers not to proceed to litigation with Barron, recommending arbitration, and the advice wasn't followed." -Article
Too bad no one ever heard Pham support those conservative principles during his 14 years in the Legislature.
Hung Pham accuses his party of lying, making "poor decisions" and taking "dishonourable" actions but still supports the PC party?
"...and after all of this, still believe in the Progressive Conservative Party of Alberta," -Pham
You might not believe in global warming, or in evolution, but it's impossible to be a PC Party denier. The evidence is all around us: infrastructure deficits; non-existent legislature sessions; a health care system that deliberately reduced the number of nurses to crisis proportions; more spent on horse racing than on housing; the list is almost endless.
Let's turf the tired Tories!
So the voters are stuck with a parachute Candidate for Montrose from Ontario, and rejected the local Association who already a established member of the community with good backing. But it like this party tired and way out of touch, I guess steady Getty(whoops eddie) doesn't need anybody local to help out, good luck Getty(darn sorry Eddie) running a campaign by yourself in all 83 ridings.
Tom
After spending some time comparing and following up on the following MLA candidates. I have full faith in the PC MLA candidate. Not only was he born in this riding (not "parachuted in from Ontario:), but he is young, motivated and has a great record of youth and political engagement. This riding needs a strong impacting voice.
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