Wildrose misrepresents Albertans on official legislature documents – why?
June 14, 2017
Dear Brian Jean,
On June 5th, 2017 I had the honour of being introduced in the Legislative Assembly by MLA Leela Aheer, Education Critic for the Wildrose.
The purpose of my visit was to witness the tabling of the hundreds of personally written and signed letters from across the province voicing concerns about the sexually graphic material that was found on a government-funded website for K-12 children.
But unfortunately those letters were not tabled.
Despite my immediate request that MLA Leela Aheer provide a public explanation as to why she reversed her commitment at the last possible moment, I have still not received a reply.
Furthermore, based on details regarding the documents which were tabled that day, there are concerns regarding inaccuracies which now exist in the official public record of the Legislative Assembly.
Given the gravity of the original concerns regarding sexually graphic material being provided to K-12 children, and now questions regarding misrepresentation of these concerns in the public record, I appeal to you to take further action.
Inaccuracies in the public record
According to page 50 of the official record from the Legislative Assembly, here is what MLA Leela Aheer tabled instead of the 700 individual letters that were originally promised:
Based on the above description, there are four critical questions which must be addressed:
1. My online change.org petition includes 2, 560 names as of today, June 14th, 2017. Yet MLA Aheer claims that she tabled a list of 2, 700 names over a week ago. Where did the extra 140 names come from?
2. Why did MLA Aheer decide to withhold the actual text of the petition and submit only the list of names to the public record?
There certainly aren’t any legislative rules that deem online petition text inadmissible as a document. In fact, only 6 days prior, the official records indicate that text from a different change.org petition was officially tabled on May 30th:
3. The official record states that the list of names supported an online petition “related to the Kindergarten to Grade 12 curriculum re-write”. However, that description misrepresents the primary purpose of the petition signed by these 2, 560 people.
A more accurate summary would be “an online petition requesting Hon Mr. David Eggen, Minister of Education, to ensure accountability for organizations that directed children to sexually graphic material found on a government recommended website.”
Most troubling is that without the text of the petition submitted alongside the names, this inaccuracy can never be verified by the public record. How is it that an MLA can be permitted to submit a description to an official public record on behalf of thousands of Albertans that fundamentally misrepresents their concerns?
4. The official records state that only 5 letters were tabled “expressing concern over sexually graphic material linked from the Alberta.” Unfortunately, this number represents only 0.7% of the total letters photocopied and provided to MLA Aheer that she had committed to table that day. What about the other 695 Albertans whose letters were not submitted? On what basis were 5 deemed acceptable and the hundreds of others ignored?
Action Required
These inaccuracies are an affront to the thousands of Albertans from across the province who signed the petition and wrote and mailed personal letters because they fundamentally misrepresent their concerns.
On behalf of these citizens, I respectfully insist that you:
1. Provide specific public answers to the first three questions I have asked regarding the inaccuracies in the documents which were tabled.
2. Personally speak to MLA Aheer and ensure she provides a public explanation as to why she did not follow-through on her commitment to table all the personally written letters that were mailed from across the province. Why only 5 letters and not the other 695?
3. Rectify the public record to ensure that the numbers and summary of the petition are corrected. If possible, ensure that the text of the petition is also attached and included with the list of names.
“On Your Side”?
Recently you have launched a new website to campaign for Premier.
Does your slogan “on your side” apply to the thousands of Albertans who have had their signatures publicly mispresented in the public record? And what about the hundreds of people who invested significant time and effort to write and mail personal letters of concern, 99.3% whose voices have now been ignored and dismissed by your party? Are you really on their side?
Why is it that you publicly supported the Wildrose being represented at the Pride Run and Walk event this past weekend, knowing this event specifically raised money to support iSMSS– the same organization which directed children to links for sex toys, BDSM and advice to pay for pornography?
Today you publicly denounced your own members for what you deemed “hateful and intolerant” comments. Will you also publicly denounce the individuals and organizations who unapologetically provided sexually graphic material to school children?
Your website says “In the midst of unprecedented challenges facing Albertans, Brian has always had our back.”
However, the question must be asked: do you actually have the backs of thousands of citizens who are deeply concerned for the safety and care of children in schools?
If so, then I invite you to showcase your leadership capabilities and demonstrate through meaningful action that you will resolve these profoundly important questions and concerns and demonstrate your care for the safety of children in this province.
Please provide a written response prior to June 21st, addressed to the thousands of Albertans who signed the petition and wrote letters, that explains why their voices of concern are not being accurately represented and addressed by your party in our Legislative Assembly.
Your letter will be posted publicly on my blog and change.org petition in order to inform Albertans of your response.
Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Theresa Ng, on behalf of concerned citizens across the province of Alberta
informed albertans 
Asking Brian Jean to explain why Leela Aheer did not follow through with her commitment to table the letters, etc. is like asking the fox why all the dead chickens in the hen house.
LikeLike
This is consistent with Wildrose. They have a grave deceptive agenda and have fooled honest hardworking family oriented Albertans for too long. They have a restriction in their own caucus on speaking out and even if the are recorded as being present in the Legislature they will tell you they were not in there for certain votes! I am sorry to say that I have warned against these people and their duplicity. There is one honest member to my knowledge Mark Smith ( not related) .
LikeLike
Not true your painting the Wildrose with the brush of NDP fear Cathy Smith … Look at what the NDP have done Cut education funding and choice when they stated they would increase funding WOW so blind.
LikeLike
Not true because you say so Bill? A Wildrose diehard? Actions speak more than words, like Wildrose’s shabby treatment of Theresa Ng as documented above. Do you condone those actions (and inactions) or do you look the other way (a willfully blind diehard Wildrose supporter)?
LikeLike
I am in awe of how persistent you are in keeping your government accountable. I hope all those involved in misrepresenting Albertans will wake up to what their job is, lead strong, and stop caving to political correctness. (from a Manitoban who is watching with interest).
LikeLike
A Tale of Two Brians
On September 4, 2016, I received a notification, “Wildrose Calgary Pride Reminder”, sent from the Wildrose head office, asking recipients to join Leela Aheer, the Wildrose Calgary-Elbow CA, and “fellow Wildrose members” to “grab a Rainbow W shirt to march in” the Calgary Pride Parade. According to a Calgary Herald report (June 3, 2016), Jaromy Farkas, president of Wildrose’s Calgary-Elbow constituency association wanted the party to become a champion of LGBTQ rights. I subsequently wrote to Leela Aheer inquiring as to who gave the Wildrose Calgary-Elbow CA and her the authority to modify the Wildrose logo (emblazoning it with rainbow colours) in that way to create Wildrose LGBTQ Pride t-shirts. I never received an explanation as to who authorized the modification to the Wildrose logo. Specifically, Brian Jean never came out to apologize and explain that such shirts including a modified Wildrose logo were not authorized or sanctioned by the Wildrose Party.
After the anti-carbon-tax rally in front of the Alberta legislature on December 3, 2016, Brian Jean rushed to the media for a press conference the following Monday, bowing to the left-wing media and telling reporters that he ‘denounced’ people who held homophobic signs and chanted “lock her up” with respect to Premier Notley. I was at the rally and happily joined the crowd chanting ‘Lock her up’. In his press conference, Brian Jean said, “I completely denounce what took place at this rally in relation to inappropriate signage that spread or encouraged homophobia”. Disappointingly, Wildrose responded to intimidation and bullying by the left-wing media as it has in the past. Brian Jean threw the people attending the rally under the bus and accused them of encouraging homophobia (a political correctness term used by the leftist ‘progressives’) on the basis of a SINGLE sign saying, “Keep gay activists out of our schools”. Additionally, he declared that “there is no place for” such people in the Wildrose Party!
Fast forward to a few days ago, when a gay Wildrose staff member, Cody Johnston, a legislative and outreach assistant for the Wildrose party, cried foul because of the feedback he received after he had e-mailed party members inviting them to attend an Edmonton Gay Pride event, the Edmonton Pride Walk and Run. As noted by Theresa, incredibly the Pride Run and Walk event specifically raised money to support iSMSS– the same organization which directed children to links for sex toys, BDSM and advice to pay for pornography and presumably that was okay with Brian Jean and the Wildrose Party.
Instead of questioning Johnston’s authority to do so and participate under the Wildrose banner in support of an event that financially supported iSMSS, Brian Jean and the Party, instead, got all exercised about the so-called hateful backlash, which included reference to Johnston’s “sinful lifestyle”. Another comment trumpeted as being hateful and homophobic was, “You certainly may do whatever you wish in your own private time. But do not give viewers the impression thst this is Wildrose approved”, seems appropriate under the circumstances given that he exceeded his authority by giving the impression that his invitation to Wildrose members was sanctioned by the Wildrose Party (presuming that it wasn’t).
Once again, Brian Jean was quick to run to the media, groveling to explain that only a few, three to four, of the 20,000 members are ‘hateful’ in an interview yesterday with Global News Morning anchor, Scott Fee, a self-confessed member of the LGBT community, who took exception to what he characterized as “homophobic comments”. Once again, as was the case in the aftermath of the anti-carbon tax rally in December 2016, Jean described people making such “hateful and intolerant comments” as not only unwelcome in the Wildrose Party but, in his view, any political party in Alberta, saying, “Those people have no home in the Wildrose, people who are going to spew hate. Frankly they have no home in any political party in my mind.” Now, as a Christian, I happen to regard such a lifestyle as a “sinful lifestyle”, but believing such a position in no way means that I hate gays. But, according to Jean, I conclude that I and other Christians are unwelcome in the Wildrose Party for holding such a ‘hateful’ attitude.
However, by way of stark contrast, when it comes to the posting of sexually-graphic material at a website intended for K-12 children in Alberta, that doesn’t warrant any special attention or running to the media by Brian Jean to call attention to it. However, a single sign at an anti-carbon-tax rally saying “Don’t Let Gay Activists in Schools” and critical feedback received by a gay activist staffer who exceed his authority by sending out an email as if he was representing the Wildrose party, does. Just as there was no consequence when some persons took it upon themselves to modify the Wildrose logo to wear it on t-shirts at last year’s Gay Pride Parade in Calgary.
LikeLike
Let’s assume the petition was NOT submitted then, because there was nothing about that information on the docket that identified your petition.
LikeLike