An Unconditional Apology To The Green Party, to Paul Manly, And To Elizabeth May. AND Additional Comment

An Unconditional Apology To The Green Party, to Paul Manly, And To Elizabeth May.  AND Additional Comment.


   Written By Robin Mathews  Sept. 2015

In my last column I made a mistake to apologize for.
That column is about the failure of the three Opposition Parties to focus – as the major election issue - on what many Canadians believe is the criminality and near-criminality of Stephen Harper and his supporters.  It bears upon all the abuses of power, all the violations of the rights and freedoms of Canadians under his prime ministership.

In that column I made an absolute statement – that none of the Opposition Parties is dealing with the economic treaty with China, FIPA, (signed, almost secretly, into law by Stephen Harper) which encroaches on Canadian sovereignty and the future freedom of Canadians.   In fact, at the early September Green Party press conference and large meeting in Nanaimo on Vancouver Island, the subject was seriously addressed and Professor Gus van Harten’s criticism of the treaty seriously considered. 

Ms. May, with Mr. Manly, spoke to a very large audience about the importance of the treaty and of van Harten’s criticism of it.  I apologize.

As Well … Not Quite An Apology … Because ….

One of my informants also remarked that “at both events Elizabeth May spoke of Harper’s behaviour as criminal.” 

I apologize for missing that … but I apologize with less completeness and conviction about that apparent error on my part.

The English language being what it is – to say someone’s behaviour is criminal is very different from saying that the person is a criminal.  In the first case “criminal” often means outlandish and extreme but it is not necessarily intended to say the person is in criminal violation of Canadian law. But when a person says someone is a criminal, the meaning is much more certain and unequivocal … and usually does mean that he or she is believed to have broken the law, criminally, in Canada and is, therefore, a criminal (but not necessarily a “convicted” criminal).

What Is A Criminal?

When I say I believe Stephen Harper is a criminal, I mean I believe he has acted criminally repeatedly but has not been investigated, charged, and convicted. Examples could be listed tiresomely. 

Take any and all the abuses of power apparently emanating from Stephen Harper’s office, called The Prime Minister’s Office, for example – “the PMO”, possessing nearly one hundred unelected workers directly accountable to Stephen Harper (and paid for by Canadian taxpayers).

Repeatedly, Stephen Harper has hidden behind the  highly questionable claim that even though he is (and has to be by definition) the person totally responsible for the actions of people working in his office, he claims he is not touched by criminal and other abusive actions in which they engage.

What Should Opposition Leaders Do?

In the present election campaign ALL the Opposition Leaders should force that matter into debate.  They should confront Stephen Harper directly, and they should make enough of the issue publicly that it has to be reported over and over and over…. They should demand, now, (and all through the campaign) full RCMP investigation of Stephen Harper’s role in every questionable action arising from the PMO and from his foreign policy actions unaccounted for to Parliament.

Informed Canadians are standing back in wonder and surprise. “Omnibus bills” have gutted transparency and have destroyed the role of the elected representatives of the Canadian people.  They have been combined with Acts intended to strip Canadians of fundamental rights (as in the dis-enfranchising new “Unfair Elections Act”).

Citizen organizations in Canada – Leadnow and Dogwood Initiative (to mention only two) are working valiantly and tirelessly to blunt the effect of Conservative/fascist legislation intended to disenfranchise Canadians in this election. Those organizations are not, it appears, receiving nearly the public recognition and encouragement from Opposition Party leaders, candidates, and Party structures that they should be receiving!

Opposition Party leaders … and candidates running for Opposition Parties … should be seizing the national media (“conventional” and unconventional) to force all those matters onto the attention of every Canadian (whether “interested” in this election or not).

In the heat of a democratic election campaign “hot”, “hidden” issues are easily brought to the forefront. Bringing forward the truth about the neo-fascist activity of the Conservative Party and government would be easy.  Every Opposition leader should be forcing the national media to focus on Conservative Party and government fascism.  And from the body of Opposition
Candidates should spring angry members appearing in unexpected places to underscore the foul, dirty, criminal, democratically destructive actions of the Conservative Party and government in the last ten years.

Instead, Canadians face Opposition Parties which are – almost unanimously – accepting the Conservative “New Order” of deceit, dishonour, Parliamentary abuse, lies, criminal behaviour, attacks on the vulnerable, the destruction of Canadian history and records … and more.  It is not enough for Opposition leaders to say “we bring this up in meetings” (where the Party Faithful gather – and the rest of Canadians remain uninformed). Opposition Leaders must take the information to ALL Canadians by whatever means (conventional and unconventional) the historical moment demands. 

Where is Stephen Harper In All This?

Close to Stephen Harper in friendship and Party work, some Party members admitted criminal guilt as part of the In-and-Out Election Scandal (2006-2011).  RCMP and other investigation never went near Stephen Harper. Could a Canada-wide Conservative criminal scam (involving more than 65 constituencies) to de-fraud the election of 2006 have happened without the knowledge of the Conservative Party leader, Stephen Harper?

And if he was innocent, why did he not act to remove ALL those involved, including Conservative senators?
He did not remove or discipline important people  involved in that fraudulent and criminal activity.

Close to Stephen Harper in friendship and Party work, Nigel Wright is the payer of an alleged bribe that Mike Duffy is charged criminally with having accepted.  The trial itself (as I argue in an earlier column) may be wholly fraudulent.  The failure of the RCMP and Prosecution services to charge Nigel Wright is illogical as well as scandalous - as is the willingness of the judge on the trial to hear argument based on that nonsense charge. Failure of the Opposition Party leaders to question the (probably phony) trial should be deeply disturbing to Canadian voters.

Increasing evidence reveals that the closest colleagues of Stephen Harper knew of the attempt to act fraudulently in the Mike Duffy matter. There is powerful reason for alleging that Stephen Harper was, at least, an accessory before and after the fact of the alleged crime…and is therefore a criminal. Where are the Opposition leaders on that subject?

The RCMP - which permitted its findings to be distorted for the Mike Duffy trial - is not investigating the role of Stephen Harper in the Mike Duffy affair.

In 2013 an order came out of the PMO, from a top officer there, we are told, that set in motion an extensive improper Robocall campaign throughout Saskatchewan to influence the process of redrawing constituency boundaries.  The Robocalls were reported; the Conservative Party of Canada paid a fine to the CRTC of $78,000.00 for violating CRTC regulations.

No charges were laid.  No investigation was undertaken to find who ordered the violation.  Stephen Harper was not questioned about his role in the violation. Because no criminal law was broken.  And that is so because corrupt governments don’t write laws to entrap themselves when they engage in what is, in fact,  criminal activity. In fact, they do everything they can to erase the connection between the Law and their lawless activities.  Opposition leaders should be making the Saskatchewan fraudulent 2013 Robocalling by the Stephen Harper forces known to every Canadian.

No employee in the Prime Minister’s Office would dare to undertake an action – like the Robocall Fraud in Saskatchewan - without knowing the action would be approved of by his/her employer – Stephen Harper.

What Are The Opposition Parties Doing?

As the September 17 Election Debate among Stephen Harper, Thomas Mulcair, and Justin Trudeau proved – the Opposition Party leaders involved refused to confront Stephen Harper with alleged criminal actions…even when they were involved in the subject of the Debate.

So far – I think it is fair to make an absolute statement – no Opposition Party leader will state publicly and loudly that he/she believes Stephen Harper is a criminal – someone who has engaged directly and/or as an accessory – in criminal activity, and is – therefore – completely unsuited to be prime minister of Canada or even to be qualified to run for political office in Canada. Many, many Canadians are wondering what is wrong with the Opposition Party Leaders.


THE ISSUE In This Election

As I wrote in my last column, Stephen Harper’s dishonesty is THE ISSUE in this election.  His abuses of power – many of which could, I believe, be categorized as criminal breaches of trust (if investigated by an RCMP which, instead, protects this government from charges of criminal activity), his almost certain participation (the Mike Duffy affair) in criminal activity, his violation of democratic practices, his attacks upon the weak and vulnerable in Canada   (upon almost defenseless crippled Canadian war veterans, for instance), his endless abuses of power in Parliament and out of it …and much more, constitute the most important issue in this federal election.

There is not an Opposition Party Leader in Canada who has named the most important election issue – Stephen Harper’s dishonesty… with the allegation that Stephen Harper is, in fact, a criminal who must face full criminal investigation by all the forces in our society tasked with that role. Instead, they are all giving him “a pass”, agreeing not to push publicly what for a huge number of Canadians is the key issue in the election.  And so – ironical as it may seem – the leaders of the Opposition Parties in Canada are accepting criminal activity as a natural and normal activity of the prime minister of Canada. 

That means “goodbye to the Canada created in 1867”, and it means “goodbye to legislation on behalf of the Canadian people” and it means “goodbye to the normal daily safety of Canadians and to their rights and freedoms”.  

Written by Robin Mathews


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