The Liberal candidate for Hamilton Centre says voters should send him to Ottawa because the riding won't get any federal cash if it doesn't have a government member.
Predicting the Liberals will win re-election on Jan. 23, Javid Mirza told an all-candidates meeting yesterday he believes the federal government can do a lot for the riding if it has a government member, not one from the opposition.
He dismissed the present MP -- New Democrat David Christopherson -- as having no pull because he's not even from the official Opposition party. The NDP are the No. 4 party in the House of Commons.
His comments were immediately denounced by Christopherson and Conservative challenger Eliot Hill, but Mirza made no apologies.
"We have to look at it realistically on how it works and that is the way it works," he said after the morning debate before about 60 students at Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School.
"The NDP is not the second official party. They're the third opposition party. They only have 19 members of Parliament and I think it is very important to have a good strong foothold in our government. It comes down to connections.
"This is crucial for us. The heart of our city is here. We're looking at our future and we need to have someone who will speak to the government, tell the government, 'Hey, this is what is needed.'"Source.
