Never before has a cocktail party at the Union of British Columbia Municipalities convention sparked so much controversy.
But this is not your ordinary cocktail party.
Port Coquitlam Mayor Brad West (Mackin)
The People’s Republic of China is celebrating 70 years of Communist Party rule. The local consulate paid $6,000 to be a sponsor so that it could host a reception on Sept. 25 at the Fairmont Waterfront Centre hotel for politicians and bureaucrats.
Port Coquitlam Mayor Brad West is outspoken in opposition and is leading a boycott. Vancouver Mayor Kennedy Stewart will not be there, but Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie will, if his schedule permits.
West said elected officials, first and foremost, owe a duty to their citizens to not be lobbied by foreign interests. That the only foreign government doing so at the UBCM convention is China is the tipping point.
Speaker Darryl Plecas (Mackin)
“We have an organization that is comprised of mayors and city councillors from across the province of British Columbia, and that organization takes a cheque from the government of China in exchange for providing the government of China access to B.C. mayors and city councillors, I think what we have there is a gross violation of what our responsibilities and duties are,” West said in an interview with theBreaker.news Podcast host Bob Mackin.
“China is engaged in a number of actions that are completely hostile to Canadian national interests, the interests of our citizens. And beyond that China is without rival the worst human rights abuser in the world.”
Listen to the full interview with West. Also an excerpt from theBreaker.news exclusive, in-depth interview with Darryl Plecas, the Speaker of the B.C. Legislature, in reaction to the first report by Auditor General Carol Bellringer into the scandal at the Legislature.
Plus, on this special 100th edition, highlights of the Nov. 5, 2017 debut and hear how the world media reacted last week to Liberal leader Justin Trudeau’s shocking 2001 blackface incident.
Click below to listen or go to Apple Podcasts and subscribe.
Have you missed an edition of theBreaker.news Podcast? Go to the archive.
Support theBreaker.news for as low as $2 a month on Patreon. Find out how. Click here.
