babble is rabble.ca's discussion board but it's much more than that: it's an online community for folks who just won't shut up. It's a place to tell each other — and the world — what's up with our work and campaigns.
Montréal Mayor Gérald Tremblay quits
November 5, 2012 - 7:01pm
*
Just in time for the PLQ leadership race!
Let's get a progressive candidate
Here is the full (English) text of Mayor Tremblay's resignation speech:
From CJAD radio
How nice he waited until after the weekend so there would be no election
Ethan Cox: Montreal Mayor Tremblay resigns amid corruption scandal
Remember that time Tremblay saved the McGill student from a mugger? Doesn't he get any credit for that?
You're stuck with Rob until his 70th birthday. Still jealous, Maysie?
Yes.
Okay, enough drift.
From Tremblay's speech:
Unless he was referring to himself, the man is so shameless that even at this point, he refused to name the "crooks" (he means four city employees who have been suspended in recent days, I think). He also continues to whine and weep that the Charbonneau Commission wouldn't call him to testify and defend himself - as if he can't just make his explanation publicly, on his own, with his hand on a stack of Judeo-Christian bibles if he so chooses.
If you or I commit conspiracy and robbery, and are publicly exposed, we can't just quit our jobs and move on. We still can expect to face police investigation and charges and a chance to defend ourselves in court. Nothing will even begin to change unless Tremblay and his accomplices are treated as ordinary citizens would be treated. The same goes for the mayors of Laval and Mascouche and the soon-to-be-revealed crooks at the provincial level.
I'm hopeful, but not optimistic.
Another little petty tyrant - Mayor of Laval since 1989 (!) - is rumoured to be quitting tomorrow. I'm shocked - I thought he was going to run out his sick leave credits first:
Mayor Gilles Vaillancourt to step down Friday: reports
Ok, Vaillancourt is gone.
In the 2009 elections, Vaillancourt won about 62% of the vote. He won every single one of the 21 "districts". Candidates of his party PRO (no one knows what the letters stand for, they just call it "Gilles Vaillancourt's party") won every single city council seat as well. Only one PRO candidate out of 21 failed to make 50% or more of the vote (he got 47%).
A CROP poll last year asked whether Lavallois(es) believed that the allegations against Gilles Vaillancourt were well-founded. 68% said "yes". About the same number said "no" when asked whether he should resign.
Since about the same time, Amir Khadir has been calling on the government to investigate the situation in Laval - in vain. Today, he commented that he hopes now, at last, the government will emerge from their torpor and either send an independent investigator to oversee council business until the next elections, or place Laval in trusteeship - or something - anything.
I'm just telling you all because we Quebeckers have been shaking our heads in disbelief for years. Why shouldn't other Canadians shake along with us in solidarity?
More popcorn, please.
The next popcorn-worthy developments should be the election of the interim mayor for Montréal. Applebaum is majorly pissed, has quit, and there are apparently dissenting factions within Union Montréal, such that the election of Deschamps (whose candidature a majority of Union Montreal councillors chose to put forward) is not absolutely guaranteed.
The main reason Applebaum claimed he quit was that he had just become aware (!) of a 2004 report saying that Montréal public works projects cost 30-40% more than other Canadian cities, and that the executive committee was refusing to release the report until after the weekend, to avoid embarrassing questions.
It was a weak story to start with. And it's just become weaker, with ex-director general of the city, Robert Abdallah, telling media that the whole executive committee knew about the report. That's calling Gérald Tremblay a liar - but Michael Applebaum too.
Source.
Yes, unfortunately Applebaum has not yet resigned as mayor of my borough. I don't want to accuse anyone of being in the pocket of developers - I'll wait for the Charbonneau Commission to do that! But I have never seen any concern from him about housing conditions confronting the main immigrant populations (African & Afro-American, Filipino, Latino, Indian & Pakistani, Arab, etc.), whether north of the Jewish General Hospital or in the poorest sections of NDG. I've sensed a bit more concern from Helen Fotopoulos, and certainly Peter McQueen. But we must now have the most impoverished neighbourhoods in Montréal, or close, and I see nothing on the horizon to address that. I regret to say I'm not very active on municipal and arrondissement issues and don't know the players as well as I should.
ETA: Forgot to mention, lagatta... Did you notice this bizarre story last month?
Ethics breach allegation lodged against Peter McQueen
The crooks rising in indignation to accuse the honest man... Some days I just shake my head... but I <3 Montréal!
Oh, and make sure to read all the heartwarming comments after that article. No one is fooled.
Applebaum has been in discussions with Vision Montréal and Projet Montréal looking to form a coalition.
His vice-chair (before he resigned as chair of exec committee) Alan de Sousa condemned him yesterday, saying Applebaum lied about who knew what when about the 2004 report on public works in Mtl costing up to 40% more than other cities. He also condemned the notion of a coalition. He said it's all sour grapes by Applebaum for losing out to Deschamps in getting the nod.
Then, this morning:
Six Union Montréal councillors have defected as of now. That means Tremblay's party no longer has a majority in council!
The secret ballot council vote to choose a new interim mayor (to serve till Nov 2013 elections) takes place Friday.
I'm clean out of popcorn. Donations, please?
with rotrand's declaration (he's a heavy hitter, for those who don't really follow municipal politics), applebaum now has 10 votes for his accession to the mairie. it's expected that vision montreal will come out for him too with their 18 votes, and there are a couple independent members who don't caucus with anyone (but lean more to the left) who are total question marks, along with project and its 10 councilors. so the union faction now has 27 members who are assumed to support descamps, the annointed candidate. if they vote as a bloc (unclear), then applebaum would need the support of vision montreal, no question.
it seems that a couple more defections are expected, but not enough to change that dynamic: if applebaum is to win out over deschamps, harel will be kingmaker.
Latest news (I only see it on the Radio-Canada ticker at the moment) is that Vision Montréal will not present a candidate and will not provide voting instructions. Apparently, there are conflicting views within Vision Montréal regarding Applebaum.
I don't believe Projet Montréal has made its intentions public yet.
Votes are being counted right now; the results should be out soon.
Bergeron apparently said explicitly that Projet Montreal would "allow" (it's a secret ballot, anyway, so...) members to spoil their ballots if they find both candidates unacceptable. Along those lines, Piper Huggins, Projet Montreal councillor in the Plateau, has tweeted "Wolves in lambs clothing remain wolves; misguided or desperate to imagine savior where there is none? Merit in content not fluff!"