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Incumbent SWLSB chairman Paolo Galati re-elected

Martin C. Barry
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Incumbent SWLSB chairman Paolo Galati re-elected

‘Success for All’ team leader begins his second term

According to polling results for the 2021 Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board elections on Sept. 26, incumbent chairman Paolo Galati won the race, outpacing challenger Noemia Onofre de Lima.

In the 2021 board elections, the first in a good number of years, voters were called upon to cast votes only for the chairperson position, as all the board commissioners had been acclaimed in September 2020.

The outcome was confirmed at SWLSB headquarters in Rosemère by Cliff Buckland, the returning officer for the 2021 school elections.

For Galati, who was first elected chairman in October 2018 and who ran under the banner of his Success for All team, it marked the beginning of a second term. “Firstly, I would like to congratulate my opponent on her campaign,” he told the Laval News the day after the vote.

“A variety of opinions have been voiced and democracy has been served,” he continued.

“I am pleased that the electors of the Sir Wilfrid Laurier School Board have entrusted me with this second mandate and I am already back at work.”

For her part, Onofre de Lima said she was “not surprised” by the outcome when she was contacted by the Laval News.

“Nothing has changed,” she said. “The board has been like that for many years.”

The final tally of votes was as follows:

GALATI, Paolo Success for All—Team Galati: 1148.

ONOFRE DE LIMA, Noémia: 250

The number of registered electors was: 43,131. The number of electors who voted was: 1,412. The number of valid ballots was: 1,398. The number of rejected ballots was: 14.

UMQ warns CAQ not to disturb ‘linguistic peace’ with Bill 96

Martin C. Barry
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UMQ warns CAQ not to disturb ‘linguistic peace’ with Bill 96

Uncertainty whether some bilingual municipalities will be keeping their status

While saying they agree generally with the CAQ government’s Bill 96 to strengthen Quebec’s French Language Charter, the Union of Quebec Municipalities is advising the provincial government to tread carefully so as not to disturb the “linguistic peace” in municipalities that have bilingual status under the current charter.

The UMQ presented its brief on Quebec’s controversial new language legislation last week to the National Assembly’s Committee on Culture and Education.

Bilingual status issue

Although neither the summary of major points nor the conclusion in the UMQ’s brief referred to the bilingual status issue, item one in their document stated that “the measures foreseen in new articles 29.2 et 29.3 appear to be satisfactory since they will allow them [municipalities] to maintain this status.

“They will thus be able, based on our of the proposed legislation, to continue to offer services in English to their Anglophone population as they do currently.” The UMQ presently has around 30 members which are recognized by Quebec as having bilingual status.

Questions Rosemère’s status

While the CAQ government pledged early on to continue allowing bilingual status in municipalities where it is warranted by at least 50 per cent English-speaking residents, there is concern the government may fine tune some elements of Bill 96’s final draft, potentially impacting currently bilingual municipalities where the number of Anglophones has fallen well below half.

Although several Committee on Culture and Education members raised small points about the UMQ’s brief, Parti Québécois MNA for Matane-Matapédia Pascal Bérubé was much harsher in his scrutiny.

“So, you find it acceptable that a municipality that has only 12 per cent Anglophones can have bilingual status?” he said, referring to the Town of Rosemère on Montreal’s North Shore.

Employment issues

UMQ president Daniel Côté (who is the mayor of Gaspé in Quebec’s Gaspésie region) said that based on the currently prevailing rules, which include recognition of an acquired right, he had no problem with it, if the municipality itself wishes to retain its bilingual status.

Bérubé continued, “If I were to suggest to you that I have here in front of me an employment offer from a municipality that has 12 per cent Anglophones and that is demanding bilingualism as one of three conditions for employment that ended last Aug. 20, do you still find that acceptable?”

Municipal autonomy

Côté answered, “From the point of view where we strive as much as possible to preserve municipal autonomy, while also respecting other linguistic requirements of course, it is municipal autonomy that gets priority, as far as I am concerned.”

Bérubé pointed a finger at a second Montreal-area municipality that has bilingual status – Town of Mount Royal.

While maintaining that TMR’s English-speaking population now stands at 18 per cent, he noted (again citing a recent employment offer) that in order to get a job with the town’s public security department, applicants are asked to be proficient in spoken and written English.

‘Unacceptable,’ said Péquiste

After Côté confirmed again that bilingual municipalities have the legal right to operate like this, Bérubé commented: “I don’t know whether it’s linguistic peace you’re out to preserve or peace in your organization.

“But as concerns us, municipalities that have less than 20 per cent [English] in their population and that want to demand knowledge of English for employment, this is an obstacle. This is unacceptable in Quebec.”

In its brief, the UMQ, representing 85 per cent of the population in municipalities across Quebec, recommended that Minister Responsible for the French Language Simon Jolin-Barrette allow the province’s towns and cities an adjustment period so that they can conform to new measures after Bill 96 is passed.

Impact on city contracts

In another recommendation, the UMQ expressed concern that new language requirements applying to municipal administration might lead to the automatic cancellation of certain major contracts awarded by municipalities should the wording of the contracts (some of which might be with suppliers outside Quebec) fall short of new French-language requirements spelled out in Bill 96.

The UMQ expressed concern that an overly rigorous Bill 96 restricting the use of English could potentially harm people who are vulnerable

In their brief, the UMQ also expressed concern that an overly rigorous language law restricting the use of English could potentially harm people who are vulnerable.

Impact on the vulnerable

“In as much as it is our wish that the entire population can communicate easily in French with their municipality, this is unfortunately not yet possible for a number of people, notably for those who have arrived more recently in Quebec or who are older,” the UMQ brief stated.

“They can run into significant difficulties in understanding certain administrative documents, leading them to call the municipality to obtain information.”

Regarding the impact of Bill 96 on administrative matters in municipalities, the UMQ noted that Section 1 of the proposed law would allow the provincial government to demand the annulment or the suspension of the execution of any outsourced contract that didn’t meet Bill 96’s more exacting French language standards.

QESBA asks CAQ government to drop ‘notwithstanding’ sections from Bill 96

Martin C. Barry
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QESBA asks CAQ government to drop ‘notwithstanding’ sections from Bill 96

‘You don’t believe there is a decline in French,’ language minister tells Anglo school boards

In a brief presented by the Quebec English School Boards Association to officials in Quebec City last week during public hearings on the CAQ government’s controversial updating of Bill 101, the QESBA recommended that several sections of the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms be removed from Bill 96 when invoking the “notwithstanding” clause.

Not by infringing

“The Quebec English School Boards Association and our nine English language school boards believe in the need to promote and protect the French language in Québec and indeed throughout Canada,” QESBA president Dan Lamoureux and executive-director Russell Copeman said in the 16-page document they tabled.

“We were the pioneers of French immersion, bilingual programs and now what we call Français Plus. We ensure the success in French for all our students and prepare them to live and work in Québec with pride.

“But that protection and promotion should not be done by setting aside the fundamental rights of Quebecers, nor by infringing on the rights of the English-speaking community of Québec. We ask that the government reconsider some of the provisions of Bill 96.”

‘Never been more French’

Although the QESBA acknowledged that the French language is in a minority position in Canada and North America, and that the QESBA recognizes that legislative, regulatory and collective efforts are needed to protect and promote French in Quebec and Canada, they said they felt compelled to observe, while citing corroborating statistics, that by many measurable criteria “Québec has never been more French than today.”

QESBA executive-director Russell Copeman declined to comment on French language minister Simon Jolin-Barrette’s suggestion that use of the French language is receding in Quebec.

As well, the brief continued, “the protection and promotion of the French language in Québec should not be done by infringing on the Québec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms,” nor “at the expense of the rights of English-speaking Quebecers and their institutions, including our Constitutional rights to control and manage our school system by virtue of section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.”

A basic incompatibility

Regarding Section 159 of Bill 96, which unilaterally amends Canada’s Constitution Act of 1867 by adding sections stating “Quebecers form a nation” and “French shall be the only official language of Québec” and “the common language of the Québec nation,” the QESBA said “this section of Bill 96 seems to be incompatible with section 133 of the Constitution Act 1867 which allows bilingualism in the Québec legislature and in federal and Québec courts.”

In addition to these claims, the QESBA maintained that proposed new restrictions in Bill 96 on eligibility for English schooling could adversely affect enrolment in the Anglophone system and discourage foreign nationals from moving to Quebec.

Impact on enrollment

Bill 96 seeks to amend the Charter of the French Language to specify that English-language education certificates for dependent children of foreign nationals temporarily living in Quebec will apply for three years only. Under the present system, the certificates can be renewed as long as the status of the parent remains unchanged.

Although the amendment would affect only foreign nationals, the QESBA asked the government to scrap the clause because of the potential effects on already dwindling enrolment in the English school system. They said it would also hurt Quebec’s ability to recruit foreign talent.

QESBA mute on French decline

Quebec Minister Responsible for the French Language Simon Jolin-Barrette asked Copeman whether the QESBA recognizes that the use of French in Quebec has been declining. “We are not demographers or sociologists,” Copeman replied, basically repeating what the QESBA stated in its brief.

“As we stated in our memo, we will not get drawn into a discussion on the relative decline of French … Are there situations on the island of Montreal? Are there situations elsewhere? Possibly, but this is not our area of expertise. We are here to talk about the impact of Bill 96 on the school network.”

French threatened, said minister

Jolin-Barrette persisted. “So, as I understand it, you don’t believe there is a decline in French,” he said. “Because in Quebec society now, there is quite a bit of consensus to the effect that effectively statistical studies demonstrate – whether it’s the OQLF or the Conseil supérieur de la langue française – that there is a decline in French and that French will continue to decline if no measures are taken.

“So, I understand that your organization is not specialized in demographic data. But does your organization acknowledge this decline?” Copeman suggested he had little choice but to give approximately the same answer to what was essentially the same question rephrased.

And the Quebec Nation?

However, the Minister Responsible for the French Language hadn’t finished. Noting that the English Montreal School Board (the largest member of the QESBA) had recently denied in a resolution the idea of Quebec being a nation, Jolin-Barrette said he was curious to know what the QESBA thought of that position.

‘The protection and promotion of the French language in Québec should not be done by infringing on the Québec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms,’ said the QESBA

“I think that even as the chairman of the English Montreal School Board himself admitted, the initial resolution was ill-advised,” Copeman responded.

“This is a conclusion that we share. And the council of commissioners at the English Montreal School Board manifestly came to the conclusion that the resolution was ill-advised, because they annulled it. So, for me that’s the end of the story.”

Laval executive-committee approves improved swings for parks

Martin C. Barry
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Laval executive-committee approves improved swings for parks

During their Sept. 22 public meeting, the members of the City of Laval’s executive-committee voted in favour of buying new and specially-adapted playground equipment for parks, approved new measures to embellish the bicycle path on des Bois Avenue, and voted in favour of new fitness equipment to be installed on the edge of the Armand-Frappier woods.

With the stated goal of making Laval a city that’s more welcoming, fair and inclusive, the executive-committee decided to issue a contract for $106,250 to Tessier Récréo-Parc for the installation of 11 swings with specially-adapted seats at 11 different park sites.

According to the city, the swings are designed to accommodate a greater range of people, based on their physical abilities. The swings are being installed in existing parks and their seats will be coated in a special abrasive to ensure safe contact. The swings are expected to be installed before winter.

Fence to be installed for des Bois Ave. bike path

Continuing some work already begun by the city on des Bois Avenue in Laval-Ouest, the executive-committee members also decided to relocate a cycling path and to install a fence to ensure the safety of bicyclists and pedestrians.

In order to embellish the area, the executive-committee members also approved the disbursement of $115,487 for landscaping. Vines will be added to the fencing to conceal the fencing material, and the bike path itself will be improved with flower beds alongside.

New fitness gear at Armand-Frappier woods

Finally, the executive-committee decided to award a $105,489 contract to Construction Vert Dure to install physical fitness and training equipment modules on the edge of the Armand-Frappier woods where there are walking paths.

According to the city, the purpose of the fitness equipment is to enhance the exercise that walkers on the paths at the woods are already receiving.

In addition, the city is undertaking work to improve access to the paths and the woods with some extra landscaping at the entrance on 65th Ave. and the development of a new walking path near a Hydro Quebec power line.

Executive-committee members The City of Laval’s executive-committee meets each week to make decisions on a variety of issues.

The executive-committee includes the following people: Mayor Marc Demers, vice-president Stéphane Boyer (also councillor for Duvernay–Pont-Viau) councillors Sandra Desmeules (Concorde–Bois-de-Boulogne), Ray Khalil (Sainte-Dorothée), Virginie Dufour (Sainte-Rose) and associate member Nicholas Borne (Laval-les-Îles).

Quebec shouldn’t seek ‘sovereignty by the back door,’ says Julius Grey

Martin C. Barry
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Quebec shouldn’t seek ‘sovereignty by the back door,’ says Julius Grey

Is disturbed neither National Assembly opposition nor Ottawa have questioned Bill 96

In Bill 96: The perils of ‘pensee unique’ published in the Toronto-based Lawyer’s Daily on May 26 this year, Montreal constitutional lawyer Julius Grey wrote that “Those who consider the proposed Quebec constitutional amendment to be purely declaratory with no effect are confusing the content of the amendment with its insertion into the Constitution.”

Pensée unique?

Perhaps not everyone is familiar with the term pensée unique. When Grey uses it, he is, according to an online encyclopedia, referring to a disparaging expression for mainstream ideological conformism, which is invariably opposed to the views of a dissenting individual.

The expression apparently was popularized by French editor and journalist Jean-François Kahn in the early 1990s, perhaps as he was trying to describe what his English-speaking counterparts had come to refer to as “political correctness.” This, in turn might be understood as a very narrow state of mind that dominates all of an individual’s or a society’s thoughts and actions.

No one questions Bill 96

In his piece, Grey maintains that “we have become a society of pensée unique on controversial questions,” as illustrated by some of the pieces of legislation tabled in the National Assembly lately, and he finds it “disturbing that none of the opposition parties in the National Assembly or the four major federal parties has questioned Bill 96 or even its constitutional change.”

While suggesting that under these conditions some really serious crisis could break out without there being so much as a debate, he said it was to be hoped that Quebec’s and Canada’s judiciary would feel less constrained by “pensée unique,” or political officials’ need to win seats in elections, so that they might “strike down the amendment and declare that the Constitution of Canada continues to apply in its entirety.”

No one disputes ‘nation’

Noting that the House of Commons in Ottawa and the National Assembly in Quebec City both now are in agreement on the idea that Quebec is a “nation” and no one (except perhaps, we might add, a certain English-language school board official) is seriously disputing it, Grey goes on to suggest that Quebec society now does indeed resemble such national states as Denmark or Poland.

‘Bill 96 and its Constitution amendment may well be one of the instalments’ leading towards Quebec sovereignty, says Julius Grey

Although he says one advantage that “nation” status might confer on Quebec is the right of self-determination, he added that “by itself, the recognition of national status adds nothing concrete.” He says that “Support for nationalism is rooted in ‘identity’ not in logic. Whenever ‘national’ concessions are granted they bring no real advantage to those in thrall to nationalism, except perhaps some leaders.”

The Bill 96 instalment

He theorizes that many Quebec sovereignists “now see independence as possible only on the instalment plan,” and that “Bill 96 and its Constitution amendment may well be one of the instalments.”

Finally, while noting that Canada obtained its independence similarly in stages, spaced many decades apart at each stage, he speculates that “if such is the goal of the Quebec government, it should state it frankly and openly and not seek sovereignty by the backdoor. All Canadians of both languages deserve that.”

Laval News Volume 29-33

George Bakoyannis
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Laval News Volume 29-33

The current issue of the Laval News volume 29-33 published September 29th, 2021.
Covering Laval local news, politics, sports and our new section Mature Life.
(Click on the image to read the paper.)

Front page of the Laval News.
Front page of the Laval News, September 29th, 2021 issue.

Witness sought following fatal accident

Martin C. Barry
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Witness sought following fatal accident

Following a fatal accident on Sept. 8 near Laval’s Champfleury neighbourhood , investigators at the Laval Police say they are seeking the help of a possible witness. In the meantime, they have arrested a suspect.

Around 10:30 pm on Sept. 8, the victim, a 61-year-old man, was walking alongside des Rossignols Blvd. near Dagenais Blvd. when he was struck by a vehicle. He was pronounced dead on the scene.

The driver of the vehicle, a Laval resident in his 20s, was arrested and blood samples were taken to verify whether he was intoxicated at the time of the accident.

Since then, the investigators have been able to determine that at the moment of the accident, a man with light brown skin, around 6 feet tall, speaking English and driving a white truck cab without a trailer, came to the assistance of the victim and then the suspect.

The investigators would like to speak to this person, as well as anyone who might have witnessed the accident. Anyone who has information may contact the LPD through their Info-Line at 450 662 INFO (4636), or by calling 911. The file number is LVL 210908-083.

Suspect sought by LPD for laptop computer theft

The Laval Police are seeking a suspect who is alleged to have stolen a laptop computer out of vehicle in a store parking lot in Chomedey more than eight months ago.

Around 12:30 in the afternoon on Jan. 7, the victim of the theft was at a Canadian Tire on Le Corbusier Blvd. While he was inside, the suspect allegedly entered his vehicle and stole the portable computer which was inside the car.

The LPD says it has images of the suspect which were taken by a security camera as the suspect was leaving the store.

Description of suspect

  • White male, around 30 years old
  • Brown, semi-long hair, dark eyes
  • Was wearing a dark blue coat, gray pants, gray backpack and a blue protective face mask.

Anyone who has information may contact the LPD through their Info-Line at 450 662 INFO (4636), or by calling 911. The file number is LVL 210107-039.

Metal structure on A-15 dismantled after collision

Hundreds of drivers heading south toward Montreal on Autoroute 15 on the morning of Wednesday Sept. 15 came to a standstill for several hours in gridlocked traffic after a vehicle slammed into an overhead piece of traffic signage which came loose and was at risk of falling.

Although no one was injured in the 5 am crash, the sign was weakened enough to concern Transport Quebec officials enough that it might collapse. And so they closed A-15 between du Souvenir and Cartier boulevards.

By 7 a.m. when rush hour was beginning, traffic was backed up more than 10 kilometres, according to eyewitnesses.

According to Sarah Bensadoun, a spokesperson with the Transport Ministry, crews dismantled and removed the structure, but the operation took several hours.

Man stabbed at a Laval sports complex

A man in his 20s who had been playing soccer at an indoor sports complex in Laval was stabbed during the late hours of Sept. 5 at the height of an argument with another player.

The LPD received a call around 11 pm, saying that a fight had broken out between two soccer players at the SportXpo sports complex on Dagenais Blvd.

According to the LPD, the victim was stabbed several times in the abdomen. After being transported to hospital, his condition was listed as stable. The police had not yet made any arrests last week, but investigators had opened a file on the incident.

Centre de pédiatrie sociale de Laval celebrates a decade of changing lives

Laval News Contributor
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Centre de pédiatrie sociale de Laval celebrates a decade of changing lives

Social Pediatrics Centre marks its 10th anniversary this autumn

This autumn, staff and parents who are part of the community at the Centre de Pédiatrie Sociale Laval will be celebrating something very special – the 10th anniversary of the non-profit children’s health and social services centre.

The Centre de Pédiatrie Sociale Laval provides activities and care to children in the surrounding community. The centre contributes to the overall development of children and adolescents with developmental, social or health problems in disadvantaged areas.

It also promotes the interests and rights of children and their families. Its mandate is to offer, in a living environment integrated into the community, interdisciplinary health services to a vulnerable clientele that is at odds with the current service network.

10 years of helping

Every day for the past 10 years, according to the centre, vulnerable children in Laval have benefited from the support of the centre’s doctors, volunteers and caregivers. Working as a team with parents, the dedicated staff create a circle of caring around each child.

To mark this important milestone in its history, the centre is launching a fundraising campaign. The campaign aims to promote the centre’s mission while raising $100,000 to help meet the growing demand for its services.

Despite having only one doctor, one educator and one psychoeducator when it opened in 2011, the centre now has a multidisciplinary team of four doctors and eleven clinical professionals deployed in three service points.

Me Jean Marius Mottet, president of the board of directors from the beginning, said he is delighted with the remarkable evolution of the centre.

“When we see the children and families we have been helping for all these years, and the impact that the centre’s team has on them, there is no doubt that the recipe is a winner,” he says.

In 10 years, the Centre de Pédiatrie Sociale Laval has improved the well-being of more than a thousand Laval residents in extremely vulnerable situations. This represents close to 30,000 interventions, each aimed at supporting the growth and development of the child.

Diver becomes spokesperson

Many Laval residents may be unaware of the small miracles the Centre de Pédiatrie Sociale is performing to change lives on a daily basis. In order to remedy this situation, the organization has found a major ally to increase its visibility: Olympic diver Meaghan Benfeito.

“Meaghan Benfeito has given us the immense honour of being the godmother of our 10th anniversary,” said Mylène Du Bois, the centre’s executive director. Meaghan’s reputation as an athletic achiever is well deserved. A three-time Olympic medallist in diving and a gold medallist in the 2021 FINA World Cup, she is widely regarded as a true inspiration for young people.

“Having spent part of her youth in Laval and being passionate about early childhood, in addition to being a model of perseverance, there is no doubt that she is the ideal spokesperson for our cause,” adds Du Bois.

According to the centre, Meaghan gladly agreed to partner with the Centre de Pédiatrie Sociale to highlight the work and services offered to Laval youths from disadvantaged backgrounds.

“The end of an Olympic cycle is always an opportune time to reflect on our professional aspirations,” says Benfeito. “And it is with young people, children and teenagers that I wish to pursue my second career when my sports career will be completed.

In 10 years, the Centre de Pédiatrie Sociale Laval has improved the well-being of more than a thousand Laval children in extremely vulnerable circumstances

“Participating in the promotion of the centre was therefore a natural choice for me. I wish to contribute to the influence of this essential work and thus contribute to the well-being of my community.”

Financial help needed

In spite of all these accomplishments, however, the Centre de Pédiatrie Sociale is currently struggling to support all the children who need help. Unfortunately, but perhaps not surprisingly, the pandemic and the containment measures exacerbated the difficulties experienced by the centre’s clientele.

However, without the centre, these children are even more vulnerable, says the Centre de Pédiatrie, and the worst may yet be in store for their health and development. As such, more than ever the mission of the centre is essential.

“The need to expand our facilities in order to adequately meet the needs of the children is one of our most pressing issues,” says Du Bois, adding that with more financial resources, the centre could help hundreds more children in neighbourhoods where the centre is not yet present, such as in Saint-François and in Laval-Ouest.

In order to pursue its mission, the centre is inviting Laval residents to be part of a caring community that takes care of its children.

Donations can be made by visiting the website cpslaval.org. “We are investing in the wealth of our society: our children,” says Me Mottet.

Annie Koutrakis wins Vimy with 51.2 per cent vote share

Martin C. Barry
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Annie Koutrakis wins Vimy with 51.2 per cent vote share

Victorious Liberal says she found it easier campaigning this time around

Seeking a second term after her first victory in 2019, incumbent Vimy Liberal MP Annie Koutrakis managed to increase her share of voter support by several percentage points in last Monday’s federal elections, handily winning the riding for her party.

By 11 pm on election night, the returns indicated that Koutrakis had the support of 51.2 per cent of voters, compared to the 47.5 per cent result she obtained two years ago.

She recalled that in the last election, not long after she had won the nomination to run for the Liberals in Vimy, she had only about a week to find a campaign office, and put together a campaign team.

Better prepared

“This time around I was more lucky, because I already had my campaign team in place, I already knew where I wanted my headquarters to be,” said Koutrakis.

“This time I felt more organized. And also, having been an elected Member of Parliament for almost 18 or 19 months, I had a better idea of what is required of what is required of me. I just felt more prepared, more organized, it wasn’t as chaotic, and I feel that I’m very well supported.”

Koutrakis said her door-to-door campaigning went very well, although there were some difficult questions from some of the constituents she met.

Frequently asked questions

The question that came up most frequently, she admitted, was why Prime Minister Justin Trudeau saw it necessary to call an election at the halfway mark since the last election in 2019, and in the middle of a public health crisis.

Koutrakis said that after two years, it had become evident that Parliament was no longer functioning effectively and that the Liberal government would probably have fallen eventually if the election had not been called.

“So, if our Prime Minister had not called the election, you can be sure that the government was going to fall soon after the summer break,” she added.

Laval-Les Îles Liberal Fayçal El-Khoury wins a third term

Martin C. Barry
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Laval-Les Îles Liberal Fayçal El-Khoury wins a third term

Vandalized election posters mar an otherwise civilized campaign

Incumbent Laval-Les Îles Liberal MP Fayçal El-Khoury cruised to an easy victory in the federal general election on Monday Sept. 20, following a local campaign in which there were signs of acrimony from critics and opponents of the minority Liberal government which had sought to shore up its status since the 2019 election in the hopes of winning a majority.

On many Liberal campaign posters erected in Laval-Les Îles as well as in other ridings throughout Laval and Montreal, vandals painted narrow Hitler-like black moustaches onto candidates’ upper lips, a seeming comment on the Trudeau government’s sometimes unpopular measures over the past year-and-a-half to deal with the Covid pandemic.

Vandalized posters

El-Khoury’s campaign posters weren’t spared the treatment, although he took it in stride. “When people are weak and desperate and they dream of victory but know they will not make it, they will use every possible way and means to try and increase their vote,” he said. “But I think it has just reflected badly on them and has been good publicity for me.”

Among the supporters and volunteers at El-Khoury’s campaign HQ on Samson Blvd. in Sainte-Dorothée last Monday evening waiting for the results to come in was long-time local political organizer Claudette Lessard who has worked for decades on federal and provincial Liberal campaigns.

Re-elected Laval-Les Îles Liberal MP Fayçal El-Khoury is seen here with (from the far left) Rouba Wehbe, riding office political assistant Karine Sahakian and his spouse, Dr. Georgette Elias. (Photo: Martin C. Barry, Newsfirst Multimedia)

She wasn’t initially optimistic about the Liberals’ prospects, fearful that the Bloc Québécois would gain seats at the expense of the Grits.

Grateful for volunteers

For his part, El-Khoury praised members of the Punjabi and Sikh communities for the help they provided him during the campaign.

“Some of the best and the strongest help on the ground was received from these communities,” he said.

El-Khoury also praised members of his staff for their loyalty and hard work, as well as his wife for the moral support and encouragement she provided him during this and previous campaigns.

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