Liberal incumbents want your votes, again, so why won’t they answer questions about rising crime, housing and other pressing issues facing Brampton residents?

The Oct. 21 vote comes down to a simple question for Bramptonians and voters across the country: Out with the old and in with the new? Or, stick with the status quo? 

Whatever the decision, local voters are dealing with a campaign riddled with sideshow distractions: candidate scandals following the unearthing of years old social media posts, including two here in Peel Region, and most recently, the emergence of past images of Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau wearing brownface for a themed-party during his teaching career at the prestigious West Point Grey Academy School in Vancouver, and a photo and video showing him in blackface on two other occasions.

Through it all, voters have to buckle down, think about substance, and figure out what their local candidates stand for, what they are promising to make the lives of constituents better, and what makes them qualified to hold office in Ottawa. 

For Brampton’s four Liberal incumbents a big part of these questions comes down to their track record over the past four years and what they’ve been able to accomplish for Brampton during their time in Ottawa. So far, they appear unwilling to share information that could help local voters make an informed decision at the ballot box.

The Pointer has reported that the four Liberal incumbents failed to get Brampton its fair share of funding from Ottawa over the past four years. It’s unclear why. How they spent their time in Parliament and in the corridors of power, where work is constantly being done by MPs on behalf of their ridings, remains largely a mystery. 

Starting in early August, The Pointer reached out to each of Brampton’s then four Liberal MPs, seeking an interview ahead of the campaign period, along with copies of their parliamentary calendars during their time in office. Such information is critical to understanding how each of Brampton’s elected representatives spent their time in Ottawa, whom they met with, specific meetings they attended and lobbying they did on behalf of issues that matter to their constituents. Did they fight for Brampton? Were they constantly advocating to get federal money to help fight rising crime in the city? Did they secure funding for crucial infrastructure projects that make neighbourhoods more vibrant and liveable? Was desperately needed affordable housing a priority for them, as evidenced by any accomplishments in Ottawa? And what about healthcare? As Brampton residents facing a dire healthcare crisis scream out for help, did the MPs give them any?

Or, was most of their time wasted attending galas and ceremonies, stepping out constantly for fancy public events that MPs are commonly invited to, not to mention weddings and other local celebrations that too many Brampton politicians in the past have focused on.

Liberal incumbents Sonia Sidhu (Brampton South) and Ramesh Sangha (Brampton Centre). 

If they spent most of their time in the constituency office helping residents with things such as immigration matters, the public should know exactly how that time was spent and what was accomplished for them.  

We know one Brampton elected official, sent to the highest legislative body in the country to fight for his residents, was a huge disappointment. Raj Grewal seemed to spend more time in Ottawa-area casinos fueling his growing gambling addiction, than he did performing his job on behalf of Brampton taxpayers who sent him to the nation’s capital.

He was removed from the Liberal party and left his constituents without an advocate in Ottawa for much of the year. Grewal, according to the CBC, is not running for office again.  

Requests for information that should be made public were sent to the city’s four Liberals who are seeking re-election, but they have been mostly silent about their track record over the past four years and their specific plans for Brampton, if voters give them another chance. 

Initial requests sent on Aug. 7 to Ruby Sahota (Brampton North), Ramesh Sangha (Brampton Centre) and Kamal Khera (Brampton West) went unanswered. Followup requests seeking confirmation that they had received the questions and asking why there had been no response were made to each of the three candidates on Aug. 16, Aug. 23 and Sept. 3. 

None responded. 

Brampton South candidate Sonia Sidhu did respond to The Pointer on Aug. 21, through a spokesperson, but didn’t provide the requested calendars and declined an interview, claiming her schedule was filled from then until the election. 

“Thank you for sending this email. Apology if there was a delay in response as I was out of the office for a few days and just got back,” the unnamed spokesperson wrote in an emailed response. “Looking into member’s schedule, she is fully booked and all of her interviews were booked in advance. Also, we are happy to help you cover the member’s achievements; however, it’s not possible to share her calendar with anyone. Again, thank you for your enquiry.  Please feel free to contact our office if you have any question or concern.”

Over the past weekend, The Pointer attempted to approach Sidhu in person during the Liberal’s “Weekend of Action” event, in which the candidate went door-knocking in the community along with local supporters. 

When The Pointer arrived at her campaign headquarters on Country Court Boulevard, we were informed Sidhu had left for “meetings and canvassing” and that an interview would not be possible. A request to return the next day for an interview was also declined, as Sidhu’s schedule was too busy. Despite her campaign’s promises to set up an interview for the coming week, an interview never materialized. 

Followup requests sent via Twitter, along with phone messages and emails to her campaign office earlier this week, were not answered. 

Liberal incumbent Kamal Khera (Brampton West)

Dodging questions about pertinent issues is not a new habit for Brampton’s elected representatives. The Pointer experienced similar silence from Brampton’s MPs when seeking information about a failed grant request submitted to Ottawa by Peel Regional Police last summer. 

The police service had applied for $3.72 million through the National Crime Prevention Strategy, introduced by the governing Liberals, to support a three-year initiative aimed at programs to reduce youth violence in Peel. The region experienced a 25.3 percent increase in violent crimes among youth between 2015 and 2016, and the incidence in youth crimes has continued to rise, by nearly 10 percentage points over the past two years.

It’s unclear why the project pitched by Peel police was turned down, as few details have been provided about the project or the reasons given by Ottawa for the denial .

There’s no doubt the region needs to work at crime prevention measures, especially following a recent bout of gun and gang violence that left two dead and seven injured across Brampton and Mississauga. 

Although they had written a letter in support of the Peel police grant application, all four Brampton MPs were silent on why it had been declined and what specifically they did, if anything, to lobby for the funding. Requests for comment sent to all four were not acknowledged. 

Brampton’s local MPs have reached out to The Pointer in the past to promote a range of items. Press releases and other announcements are commonly shared, highlighting initiatives they wish to draw attention to. For example, on Aug. 26, amid The Pointer’s attempt to get an interview and parliamentary calendars, The Pointer received a press release from Sahota in regards to a federal investment in gun and gang funding. However, when it comes time to answer questions, there has only been silence. That funding initiative highlighted in the press release Sahota sent, will mostly benefit Toronto, which will receive two of four new provincial “justice centres” to address rising gang violence with the help of the funding from Ottawa. The local MPs would not make themselves available to explain why Peel did not get one of the anti-gang justice centres expected to open next year.   

Ruby Sahota, Liberal incumbent for Brampton North.

Politicians have a responsibility to their local constituents, and it is the role of media to both acknowledge their accomplishments and hold them accountable when they fail. Avoiding scrutiny prevents voters who sent them to Ottawa from understanding if their tax dollars are being put to good use by the elected officials whose salaries are paid for by the public. 

Looking at the situation in Brampton and repeated calls from municipal politicians for the city’s “fair share” of funding, the silence suggests Brampton’s MPs could be dodging what they expect will be tough questions pertaining to their record in Ottawa. 

A key election plank for the Liberals in 2015 was adding $60 billion to federal funding over 10 years to help cities deal with replacing, repairing and improving local infrastructure. That money, added to the Stephen Harper government’s prior commitment of $128 billion, brought the total spending up to $188 billion. 

The City of Brampton has received approximately $42.4 million from the Investing in Canada Plan to support a range of small projects. In contrast, Edmonton has received more than $1.9 billion from the same $188 billion federal infrastructure plan over the same period for more than 50 projects, including many that received tens, even hundreds, of millions of dollars each. In Brampton the largest chunk, $12.4 million to assist with expanding the Sandalwood Transit Maintenance Facility, was received in 2017. But the cumulative funding here is nowhere close to where Brampton should be simply on a per capita basis (about $972 million), and the impact clearly shows in Brampton’s 2019 budget. 

City staff estimate there is a $246-million infrastructure gap for unfunded projects, which, if ignored, could grow as high as $743 million by 2027. It’s clear that Brampton and other Canadian cities cannot shoulder the burden of these costs alone.

Liberal incumbent Ramesh Sangha (Brampton Centre), alongside Catherine McKenna, Minister of the Environment and Climate Change during a recent announcement in Brampton.

So why has Brampton received so little? Have local MPs been advocating for more? Did they meet with ministers responsible for these important files and advocate for the needs of the city, on this and other key issues facing Brampton? Did they work with city or police staff on federal grant applications? Did they work to get badly needed healthcare funding for Brampton? We don’t know. In fact, very little is known about what Sangha, Sahota, Sidhu and Khera did over the last four years. 

We do know they went on a controversial trip to India last year with the prime minister and attended a string of swanky galas and parties. What benefit did the taxpayer-funded trip bring to Brampton? We don’t know. Did the local MPs who went produce a detailed public report showing what benefit the taxpayers received for sending them half-way around the world? Not to our knowledge.

Local voters want to know what has been done for them. Waving around the Liberal party’s national election platform or constantly sending out press releases about the latest federal government bill or other accomplishments, offers Brampton voters little information about what the local MPs are actually doing themselves, for their city.   

It raises questions about what the incumbents may be avoiding. If they had been doing everything in their power to boost Brampton and better the community, wouldn’t they be celebrating it, or at least be more than willing to bring this information to the voters? Examples of an incumbent’s lobbying efforts could easily be summarized in a point-form list titled “Reasons to Vote for Me Again.”

However, much remains unclear, and until these incumbents come out of hiding, the answers will remain in the dark.

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @JoeljWittnebel