Let me preface this post by declaring my disgust with the Senate and my support for a full public federal/provincial process to discuss reformation or abolition.
Yesterday - Prime Minister Stephen Harper - demonstrated again his disdain for Canada and the Constitution.
We could argue at this point that Stephen Harper is an element causing disruption to the economy and affairs in Canada.
I ask again - is the Prime Minister under investigation by the RCMP or CSIS?
Many Canadians are sick of the Senate - we have lost confidence in the Upper Chamber as a result of unethical and perhaps criminal behavior of some Senators.
Many Canadians want reform - many want abolition - many want continuity with significant oversight.
Regardless of what we want - there is a process to change the Constitution of our country and it must be followed. I do not care what Harper, Mulcair, Trudeau, and May want - I care that they follow process.
Right now there are 22 vacancies in our Senate. These seats should be filled. They should have already been filled. The fact that Harper refuses to fill them is in direct opposition to our Constitution. The PM is once again snubbing the laws and Constitution of Canada.
The leaders of all political parties can muse about what the Senate should look like, operate like, or even whether or not it should exist - but they cannot pretend to be the decision makers on this issue.
This is paramount to saying the publicized evidence of an individual charged with a crime should be all it takes to find that party guilty. We do not need the courts or criminal justice system - we only need a hand full of people to declare somebody is guilty.
A Vancouver lawyer is in the process of challenging Harper's refusal to appoint Senators - via a court challenge.
I want to know where Governor General David Johnston is. The GG should be filling those seats. He should be taking his duties seriously. The policy of a PM providing advice to the GG on Senate appointments is just that - policy - NOT law.
David Johnston appears to have no problem making the ceremonial events or representing Canada in his capacity - he should have no problem doing his constitutional job.
Until the Constitution of Canada is changed - the Senate exists.
The following clause is not a thought it is law. "When a Vacancy happens in the Senate by Resignation, Death, or
otherwise, the Governor General shall by Summons to a fit and qualified
Person fill the Vacancy." See HERE
Arguing that there are no set time frames is ridiculous - it is frivolous - it is disingenuous.
The time frame is now - the word is "shall" and the responsibility falls on the Governor General.
Three men and one woman (Harper, Mulcair, Trudeau, May) do not possess the power to thwart the Constitution because they do not like it. They have the power - under process to start a process of change or amendment to the Constitution.
All Opposition parties should be screaming from the rooftops when the Constitution is being violated. Not doing so for political opportunism makes them no better than Harper - the man and party they want defeated.
Amending or changing the actual function of the Parliament is very serious and should be treated as such. This is not a political football to be tossed back and forth like children on a playground.
If these men and one woman want the respect of the electorate - respect our constitution.
As for Governor General David Johnston - he is a disgrace. Until he takes his real duties seriously - I cannot support him.
As for the media - once again they demonstrated how easily they fall into Harper's manipulation of the press. Harper proclaimed yesterday - under very weird circumstances - that:
1. He will not appoint Senators and
2. He wants the Senate abolished
Where's the scrum? Where's the oversight?
The man said that his refusal to appoint Senators will force the provinces to come up with a plan for reform. So our Prime Minister states that he will deliberately break the law until others decide to change it. This protest must potentially contravene C-51 - so where is the RCMP? where is CSIS?
Yes Canadians want change - but we want it done lawfully - particularly when it's the legislators who are ignoring it.
We as Canadians cannot jump all over Harper when he breaks some laws but not when he breaks this law.
In this particular case - Harper should be forced to follow law - Mulcair should knock off playing with it - Trudeau needs to explain better - and May - I'm not sure (not enough media coverage)
Governor General Johnston needs to appoint 22 Senators - now.
I'm not sure abolition is best or a Triple E is best. I do know that ignoring the law in an effort to change it - is NOT the role of elected representatives.
Showing posts with label constitution. Show all posts
Showing posts with label constitution. Show all posts
Saturday, July 25, 2015
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Premier Dunderdale Unbelievably Ignorant and CBC can Prove it
The statement below made by Premier Dunderdale in the Telegram yesterday demonstrates with absolute certainty that she is unable to achieve the best deal for our hydro resources.
“Mr. Peckford — I don’t know how close Mr. Peckford ever was to the energy files here in the province in terms of a new development. I know a great deal of work went into (Upper Churchill) redress”...
This demonstrates the Premier's ignorance with respect to the history of these resources.
First - when Peckford attended and participated in the Constitutional Conference of 1981 - he was dealing head on with the issue of wheeling power through Quebec. Not on the issue of the Upper Churchill rather the ability to develop the Lower Churchill and build a transmission line through Quebec.
It got real nasty as Trudeau articulated that this issue was in fact a federal matter and in a round-about way alluded to his ability as the Prime Minister to make that happen. At that point Trudeau's Energy Minister Marc Lalonde dismissed the need for federal interference in what he called a province to province matter.
In either case that should have been the first clue to Dunderdale that Peckford was actively pursuing a Lower Churchill deal - and therefore would be very familiar with the energy files and "new development".
But hey - let's not stop here with the education program for our Premier.
At this point I beg the CBC to take from its television archives the On Camera 2 part series on the potential development of the Lower Churchill - when Peckford was Premier.
Please let Dunderdale know and the people of this province see what exactly was at stake in Peckford's era regarding the development of the Lower Churchill.
Demonstrate that Premier Dunderdale is ignorant to the history of this great resource in Labrador and is not competent enough to proceed with this proposed Emera deal.
Maybe our Premier could witness what a real vision looks like. Perhaps she would understand that the Power Authority for the State of New York (PASNE) was looking to build the maritime route then - and we were not on the hook for it. Look at what we would have received for the energy we produced.
Please CBC - do not let the people of Newfoundland and Labrador down - show them this archived series and give people real information.
The only thing our Premier could have taken Peckford to task on - she did not even know; Peckford gave up a tremendous deal on the Lower Churchill for the same reasons Dunderdale and Williams claim to be the reason they are doing the Emera deal. To spite Quebec!
That does not cut it when we are the ones paying for the spite and who knows what else.
Our Premier should leave this resource alone before it is lost forever. The road Dunderdale is on will most surely make us dependent on Quebec forever.
“Mr. Peckford — I don’t know how close Mr. Peckford ever was to the energy files here in the province in terms of a new development. I know a great deal of work went into (Upper Churchill) redress”...
This demonstrates the Premier's ignorance with respect to the history of these resources.
First - when Peckford attended and participated in the Constitutional Conference of 1981 - he was dealing head on with the issue of wheeling power through Quebec. Not on the issue of the Upper Churchill rather the ability to develop the Lower Churchill and build a transmission line through Quebec.
It got real nasty as Trudeau articulated that this issue was in fact a federal matter and in a round-about way alluded to his ability as the Prime Minister to make that happen. At that point Trudeau's Energy Minister Marc Lalonde dismissed the need for federal interference in what he called a province to province matter.
In either case that should have been the first clue to Dunderdale that Peckford was actively pursuing a Lower Churchill deal - and therefore would be very familiar with the energy files and "new development".
But hey - let's not stop here with the education program for our Premier.
At this point I beg the CBC to take from its television archives the On Camera 2 part series on the potential development of the Lower Churchill - when Peckford was Premier.
Please let Dunderdale know and the people of this province see what exactly was at stake in Peckford's era regarding the development of the Lower Churchill.
Demonstrate that Premier Dunderdale is ignorant to the history of this great resource in Labrador and is not competent enough to proceed with this proposed Emera deal.
Maybe our Premier could witness what a real vision looks like. Perhaps she would understand that the Power Authority for the State of New York (PASNE) was looking to build the maritime route then - and we were not on the hook for it. Look at what we would have received for the energy we produced.
Please CBC - do not let the people of Newfoundland and Labrador down - show them this archived series and give people real information.
The only thing our Premier could have taken Peckford to task on - she did not even know; Peckford gave up a tremendous deal on the Lower Churchill for the same reasons Dunderdale and Williams claim to be the reason they are doing the Emera deal. To spite Quebec!
That does not cut it when we are the ones paying for the spite and who knows what else.
Our Premier should leave this resource alone before it is lost forever. The road Dunderdale is on will most surely make us dependent on Quebec forever.
Tuesday, February 01, 2011
Telegram story demonstrates Liberals don't know own Party Constitution
Telegram Story "Cabana throws in with the Liberals"
Below is an excerpt from the story - I have underlined certain areas for emphasis.Liberal party president Judy Morrow said Cabana called her Sunday night to say he was interested in getting involved in the party.
“We have no membership in the party; we’re an open and democratic party and anyone is free to seek a nomination or to partake in provincial party activities,” Morrow said.
She said Cabana is welcome to get involved, but as party president she has to stay impartial on who is nominated to carry the Liberal banner into the election.
“My role is to insure that we have a fair process in place,” Morrow said. “I think that that’s indicative of what didn’t go on in the PC party in the last little while.”
Liberal MHA and acting Opposition Leader Kelvin Parsons also said the party is open to anyone who wants to get involved.
“It’s not complicated, I mean, we have an open door policy,” he said. “I would encourage anyone who wants to run for the Liberal party, don’t wait for September or October to do it.”
Now please go HERE and view the Liberal Party of Newfoundland and Labrador - see under bylaws.
Cabana's rules Cup runneth over - oh oh here we go again
Some years ago - I was enquiring about the membership rules of the Liberal Party. The reason was innocent enough - I wanted to know what would happen to party members of the provincial Liberal party as many of them were in the middle of condemning the federal party under Paul Martin during the equalization war.
Anyway in that party I was told - you can be a member of the provincial and federal Liberal party at the same time - or you can be a member of the provincial division only - HOWEVER - you are not permitted to be a member of any other political party - Provincial or Federal.
This I was told as the parties jointly raise cash - share election and policy stuff - back and forth.
Means you could not have a federally Conservative Cabana in a provincially Liberal party.
ARTICLE I - MEMBERSHIP
1. The Party shall be open to all who desire to support the Party and who wish to be known as Liberals. To this end, all individuals who are resident of the Province and are Canadian Citizens, aged fourteen (14) years of age or older shall be eligible for membership in the Party without discrimination based on race, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age or mental or physical disability, provided that they are not members of any other political party.
You see it appears that most all rules of the libs are entwined fed-prov - prov-fed example below:
2. (a) There shall be an Executive Committee consisting of the President, Vice President
(Provincial), Vice President (Federal) Treasurer, Secretary, and Party Leader; all
of whom, except the Party Leader, shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting
of the Party in years which end in even numbers. The Provincial Regional
Directors shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting of the Party in years
which end in uneven numbers.
So will Brad - quit the federal conservative party in order to join the federally managed controlled - undemocratic provincial liberal party?
Yes Newfoundland and Labrador if the federal libs do anything anti-Newfoundland and Labrador (common) you can't oppose that and remain a member of the provincial party....so they say.
Anyway in that party I was told - you can be a member of the provincial and federal Liberal party at the same time - or you can be a member of the provincial division only - HOWEVER - you are not permitted to be a member of any other political party - Provincial or Federal.
This I was told as the parties jointly raise cash - share election and policy stuff - back and forth.
Means you could not have a federally Conservative Cabana in a provincially Liberal party.
ARTICLE I - MEMBERSHIP
1. The Party shall be open to all who desire to support the Party and who wish to be known as Liberals. To this end, all individuals who are resident of the Province and are Canadian Citizens, aged fourteen (14) years of age or older shall be eligible for membership in the Party without discrimination based on race, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age or mental or physical disability, provided that they are not members of any other political party.
You see it appears that most all rules of the libs are entwined fed-prov - prov-fed example below:
2. (a) There shall be an Executive Committee consisting of the President, Vice President
(Provincial), Vice President (Federal) Treasurer, Secretary, and Party Leader; all
of whom, except the Party Leader, shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting
of the Party in years which end in even numbers. The Provincial Regional
Directors shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting of the Party in years
which end in uneven numbers.
So will Brad - quit the federal conservative party in order to join the federally managed controlled - undemocratic provincial liberal party?
Yes Newfoundland and Labrador if the federal libs do anything anti-Newfoundland and Labrador (common) you can't oppose that and remain a member of the provincial party....so they say.
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