One of the big questions of the week in Burnaby politics is why Heather Leung is running such a private campaign.
The Burnaby North-Seymour Conservative candidate has refused to respond to calls from the media about her campaign. She has also – so far – refused invitations to all-candidates’ meetings and events from community groups.
The Conservative Party of Canada has repeatedly refused to try and arrange an interview, despite offering to set up an interview with a “local” candidate when the election was announced. It's like Where's Waldo, but without the cute toque.
So, we’re left to wondering where Leung stands on the issues (although we do know she is against abortion, even if a woman has gotten pregnant after being raped, based on this website). All we’ve been told is she’s out door knocking.
A Burnaby resident named Peter can testify that Leung is out door knocking because she knocked on his door last week. Peter didn’t want his last name used for what I assume is a fear of being targeted by right-wing trolls. I can attest to being attacked by those same trolls and it’s not fun.
Peter said that the NOW’s Sept. 19 front page story, Candidate unreachable after months of requests, “further demonstrates how unqualified a candidate Ms. Heather Leung is.
“Last week, she did knock on my door and spoke with my grown son,” Peter said. “He asked her about her platform and she only replied that she speaks three languages. That's it. Perhaps she is afraid of going to a debate to tackle the issues … My home has three undecided voters in it, but situations like these help narrow the field and make our choices easier.”
Politics is a tough business. Candidates are expected to be able to discuss their stances on issues and give reasons why they support those stances. This isn’t anything new. What does seem to be relatively new are the Conservatives shielding so many of their candidates from public scrutiny.
It’s an insult to democracy.
Follow Chris Campbell on Twitter @shinebox44.
