(Picture Courtesy: CTV News, Calgary)
Team Chase
The transition from the largest opposition party to a movement for the people seemed to be the direction of the NDP campaign as it geared up for the next provincial elections. At a recent town hall meeting of NDP members in Calgary, the new leader, Naheed Nenshi, hinted at a renewed party strategy as they advanced.
Drawing on his remarkable oratory skills, likely honed during his previous experience as a teacher, Nenshi seemed well-prepared as he scrutinized the policies of rival Danielle Smith. He emphasized that in many communities, the healthcare system had essentially collapsed. He argued that under her leadership, the shutting down of emergency rooms due to understaffing had become the new normal.
He further highlighted that Alberta has the highest unemployment rate in the country. While recent policy changes have helped ease the situation, it remains the highest nationwide.
Expressing his solidarity with teaching staff across the province, Nenshi shared stories of the despair and challenges faced by educators. He pointed out that educational assistants had not received a wage increase in over a decade.
Mocking Smith for her weekly YouTube videos, Nenshi referenced a recent video where Smith announced an $8.6 billion investment in public education and school construction. However, Nenshi criticized her for not providing details on the number of schools or where they would construct them.
Quipping that it was a generational announcement, Nenshi stated she should probably know what she was spending the money on. He added that with that announcement, she had already caused a spike in construction costs.
While the construction industry was already frustrated with the government over the Green Line project, Nenshi noted that the announcement coincided with its declaration that it was no longer interested in building government projects due to a lack of trust. He argued that while the announcement created immediate inflation, the government would fail to construct even 30,000 school spaces with the budgeted funds.
Nenshi stated that there had been an increase in the population of Calgary. Hence, its Board of Education needed funding for 22 schools last year. However, it received funding for just one. He pointed out that of all the jurisdictions in Canada, Alberta had the lowest per-student funding.
He declared that the incumbent government was disinterested in governing, adding that they knew how to waste money and pick fights.
Nenshi was also critical of how the provincial government handled the Green Line project. He quipped that the Bank of Honesty of the UCP had become insolvent and added that it withdrew support after initially backing the project.
He quipped that they lit $2.1 billion on fire after wasting $100 million on Turkish Tylenol and betting $1.5 billion on Donald Trump winning an election.
Turning to the Parental Rights policy proposed by the UCP, Nenshi described it as anti-trans legislation. Citing a peer-reviewed study in the journal Nature, he noted that such legislation increases the risk of suicide and self-harm among trans children by over 70%. Nenshi warned of valid concerns about the political games Smith was playing.
Nenshi offered a broader critique of political ideologies, especially those on the right. He pointed out that politicians have realized they no longer needed to appeal to the average person. All they cared about was whether they could rile up certain bases.
He argued that this kind of politics fosters division, mean-spiritedness, and defensiveness.
Nenshi said that told people things would never be better than they were and that they must cling to what little they have because someone else will take it away.
While Take Back Alberta and Make America Great Again were slogans, he mockingly asked from whom and for whom.
However, Nenshi ended his remarks on an optimistic note. He urged people not to settle for what they got because better was possible.
Having grown from 8,000 members at the beginning of the year to over 85,000, the Alberta NDP was currently the largest political party in the province, surpassing both the federal Liberal and Conservative parties.
During the Q&A session, Nenshi addressed the growing demand to distinguish the provincial NDP from the federal party. When asked about his stance on the coal mining project in the Eastern Slopes, Nenshi firmly responded that they would do everything they could to ensure it does not move forward.
Questioning whether the move to create capital funds for private schools was an attempt by Smith to secure the religious minority vote, Nenshi concluded by promising higher wages in line with inflation once his government-in-waiting came to power.