Watch Diversity Flash for July 30, 2020 https://www.facebook.com/563193900483455/videos/420217812245456
Article by Sayid Ahmed, a family man, community organizer, economist with the Government of Alberta, Alberta Government Middle Level management, and President of one of the UCP Constituency Associations.
Diversity Magazine was contacted by someone from the Ethnic Media Team of the UCP Government if we want to interview any of the ministers on the economic recovery plan. We said yes and dedicated one of our writers on that project. She sent multiple emails but no response yet. We stumbled on this active discussion on Sayid Ahmed’s Facebook which summarizes Alberta Economic recovery, and Alberta politics as of today.
Read and draw your own conclusions as the discussions are un-edited.
Sayid Ahmed – This is an impressive record with a very tangible results. Who can say this is not a hardwork in Action? Alberta’s Legislature has been the most productive legislative body in Canada by a country mile.
Our legislature sat more days than any other Legislative body in Canada and has introduced and passed more bills in 2020 than anywhere else in Canada such us by passing 34 government bills and one private member’s bill. Government delivered on 93 more platform commitments – meaning 255 out of the government platform 375 promises are now kept or well underway. For reference, that’s 68% of the platform commitments kept, even though we’re only 31% of the way through our 4-year mandate.Nothing like this happening in Canada in a period like this.
I’m very proud of our United Conservative Party MLAs, who have been working non-stop, and the last few days around the clock, to pass bills protecting lives, livelihoods, and keeping our promises to Albertans. In the weeks and months ahead, UCP government will keep focusing on Alberta’s economic Recovery, and turn more of our attention to the massive fiscal challenge that now lies in front of us.The Legislature will be back with a fiscal update at the end of August. https://www.alberta.ca/release.cfm?xID=72922150FC9BC-D1AA-61DA-EBCECC79272503C3
Liam O’Donnell – Actively stripping Albertans of public health care, overtime, labour rights, quality public education…
Sayid AhmedLiam O’Donnell – quite the opposite indeed!
Liam O’DonnellSayid Ahmed – nope. Privatizing health care, endangering our children and families with a back to school plan with zero direction or adequate funding and resources to protect teachers and children, making war with Albertas doctors throughout a public health crisis, stripping Albertans of the right to protest, nearly everything this neoliberal nightmare of a party has done has been to the detriment of Albertans.
AbuMascuud Bin Awdahir – And the list goes on! After all, they say, one man’s meat is another man’s poison.
Liam O’DonnellAbuMascuud Bin Awdahir – The list of the damage the UCP has done to Alberta is far longer. It took less than a year for this UCP to turn Alberta into a have not province for the first time in 55 years.
AbuMascuud Bin Awdahir – You didn’t get my point. I was with you on this. I have seen the damage first hand. I used to work in the construction industry, and everyone I have talked to was telling me how they are feeling the burn, particularly Union workers. The UCP can claim all they want, the evidence on the ground supports otherwise. And here we are, one man’s meat is another man’s poison.
Liam O’DonnellAbuMascuud Bin Awdahir – My apologies sir. Your reactions had me confusing your position.
Sayid Ahmed – Thanks for your time and perspective. Consider the worst health emergency in this century and impact it had to people. UCP stood up for our province to get a share of federal transfer to our province that also contributed to get some boosted transfer from the province. Respectfully!
Liam O’Donnell – Sayid Ahmed nice spin. But the reality is we have Trudeau to thank for albertans being able to weather this pandemic.Even prior to the pandemic, the ucp managed to drive Alberta into have not status with its destructive policies.And since the pandemic, the ucp has moved to undermine our health care system, to Americanize it. Along with the unconscionable war with albertas physicians that risks driving away nearly half of our doctors, in the midst of this health emergency. The ucp behaviour is unconscionable.The ucp has never stood up for alberta. They’ve tried to pick fights with Ottawa over equalization that Kenney himself wasn’t responsible for when he helped draft the current equalization model.The ucp has dogwhistled separatism in Alberta, which is also destructive.Dropping 1.5 billion on a defunct pipeline project that solely benefits the US, while also claiming Alberta is broke and can’t afford to maintain its teachers and nurses.And what’s worse is the attacks on Alberta workers. Stripping us of OT pay and workplace protections is appalling. Especially given many of us are working the front lines during this pandemic.Then there’s the theft of public sector pensions that aimco went and lost billions of. Which hurts albertans retirement.There’s nothing defensible about this criminal government, with due respect Mr Ahmed.
Jean MV U – I guess the impact of those Bills matter than just the number. It is easy to pass any bill when you have a majority gvt. I do not see the number of Bills passed as a performance metric to even report.
Trond Frantzen – Sayid Ahmed – Equalization transfers to Alberta (first time in 55 years!) have nothing to do with the UCP or Jason Kenney. It is required by our Constitution based on a strict formula that benefits all provinces in time of need. It’s a benefit of being part of Canada.
Sayid Ahmed – You are right the key outcomes of these bills are their role in ensuring Alberta’s economic recovery, to attract job creating investment to our province, enabling market access for our energy products, investment to help municipalities create jobs and cope with COVID, modernizing health system and tangible investment in mental health, addiction recovery, increasing our choices in education which expands available options for parents and students to choose the choosing of their choice, law that protects the victims of crime and law that reduced and speed up the regulatory process throughout government, encouraging investment, increases Alberta’s competitiveness and helping our economy recovery from the worst pandemic and economic recession since the Great Recession……. I could go on and on to talk about the tangible positive impact of these laws. Again appreciate your perspectives and the dialogue!
Liam O’Donnell – Sayid Ahmed none of those things are actually happening. And I find the ucp making claims that these were the intention behind the long list of legislation that has been nothing but harmful to albertans to be deeply dishonest.How are you protecting victims of crime, by stealing funds intended for compensation for said victims, an handing it over to police?How are you enhancing parents choice of schools, by cutting funding from public schools and transferring it to private and charter schools that average Alberta families can’t afford?How are you helping Alberta workers by rolling back workplace protections and allowing employers to avoid paying overtime wages?The ucp knows exactly the damage they’re doing to Alberta families, they just don’t care, as long as their donors get cushy jobs milking taxpayer dollars on pointless panels that have predetermined outcomes.And then there’s the health minister violating confidentiality by taking doctors personal information to contact dissenting doctors directly to make threats. Confronting a doctor at his home and making threats In front of his children. Making war with physicians that risks having nearly half of our doctors leaving the province.Your rhetoric sounds like the ucp are trying to do good, but the reality is that they don’t care. They just want to transform Alberta into this ideological dystopia. Albertas economy was already recovering and well on the path to diversification before the ucp got elected. And in one short year, even before the pandemic, they transformed Alberta from a prosperous province, into a have not province for the first time in 55 years. That’s the real outcome here.
Sayid Ahmed – Thank you for your input Laim!
Sayid Ahmed – but clearly you and I see the issue from completely different perspectives. I believe regardless of our views we can work together to create a better Alberta.
Liam O’Donnell – Sayid Ahmed if we had a government that was interested in the betterment of Alberta and albertans perhaps we could. Unfortunately we have a neoliberal government with authoritarian aspirations.A government that actively suppressed or demeans any dialogue that isn’t consistent with their rhetoric. It’s infuriating. Even with the PCs we had at least consideration for dialogue. This party isn’t interested in anything but ramming their agenda undemocratically through Alberta at break neck speed.
Liam O’Donnell – Suggesting that the blitzkrieg restructuring of Alberta to be a province with quality of health care dependent upon personal wealth, stripping albertans of the right to protest, undermining public education, stripping labour rights, is a good thing, is appalling.You left out how often this government suppressed debate, refused to disclose information to the public, and the effort to hide money in an unaccountable war room.As a result of this destructive and undemocratic government, Alberta is now a have not province. For the first time in 55 years, Alberta will get more from Ottawa than we contribute. All because of the incompetent and destructive path the ucp have charted for us.You going to continue to applaud that?
Trond Frantzen – The quantity of bills passed is not a measure of value. It’s not a hockey game; whereas whoever passes more bills wins. Quality is lacking in many of these government bills, IMO.
Beatrice Ghettuba – Come on Sayid! I know we make choices and you have made some clear ones, rightly so! But surely….do you feel compelled to flatter? Quantity ain’t quality! What about the anti labor bill? Can you build sound economic foundation by short changing the critical component of economic activity? I bet then the inequalities in American system is plausable to you? Even when the evidence is clear that the American world leadership is over? Good luck with cool aid!
Sayid Ahmed – The key point is that each an every bill passed.
Liam O’DonnellSayid – Ahmed every bill passed. This isn’t a testament to good leadership. This is a testament to the abdication of democracy in Alberta. In order to pass these bills, the ucp suppressed debate, suppressed or ignored the public response, and rammed these bills through in a blitzkrieg manner to avoid scrutiny and dissent. This isn’t a good thing.
Meaghan Conroy – It is a majority government. Not exactly a feat.
Sayid Ahmed – is ensuring Alberta’s economic recovery, to attract job creating investment to our province, enabling market access for our energy products, investment to help municipalities create jobs and cope with COVID, modernizing health system and tangible investment in mental health, addiction recovery, increasing our choices in education which expands available options for parents and students to choose the choosing of their choice, law that protects the victims of crime and law that reduced and speed up the regulatory process throughout government, encouraging investment, increases Alberta’s competitiveness and helping our economy recovery from the worst pandemic and economic recession since the Great Recession……. I could go on and on to talk about the tangible positive impact of these laws. Again appreciate your perspectives and the dialogue!
Liam O’Donnell – Sayid Ahmed yet none of these results have happened, instead quite the opposite. Yet even in the face of the reality of our situation, you still push all the easily disproven ucp rhetoric.
Beatrice Ghettuba – Sayid Ahmed I cannot shake this feeling that you are deliberately being disingenuous! You know that the world demand and price for the energy products is at its lowest; you know that the AB energy sector is experiencing capital flight even as we speak! How can you, in good conscious, make such blatant claims! Based on what? 32 bills?
Sayid Ahmed – regarding Bill 32, I watched the debate when this was on and read the bill itself, from my perspective and it complex bill and has great benefits to both employees and employers. In many fronts it protects the rights of workers over the union, it also promoting fairness and productivity to help keep more Albertans employed. But is more complex than that so I don’t agree the characterization that it is anti labor bill, but I appreciate your thoughts and comments!
Liam O’Donnell – Sayid Ahmed this is where your confusion lies. You’re confusing who is impeding the rights of workers.It’s the unions that are made up of and represent the interests of Alberta workers. And by stripping unions of constitutionally protected rights, you aren’t protecting workers, you’re impairing the rights of workers to unionize, yo organize and to collectively bargain. The ucp sees themselves as union busters, which isn’t to the benefit of workers, it’s to the benefit of corporations that prefer to exploit worker for as little as possible.Also effectively stripping workers of overtime pay, which more than half of Alberta workers depend on to support their families, is a direct assault on albertans. It won’t keep albertans employed. It will ensure albertans get short changed. In additions the removal of worker protections against unannounced shift changes, increasing the ability of employers to force workers to work overtime (now without OT pay) endangers workers well being, as working longer hours means workers are more fatigued and prone to injury.It 100% is an anti labour Bill.
Sayid Ahmed – Albertan see that this government acted during this crisis to protect lives and livelihoods. Government announced a bold and historic Alberta recovery plan, that includes unprecedented investments in infrastructure to get people back to work right away! The recovery plan priorities include a historic $10 billion infrastructure plan for our province to build roads, bridges and repairing highways and that’s already creating jobs now, when they are needed most (and is expected to create 50,000 jobs), while also making sure that our province can continue to grow in the future with the world-class services and infrastructure Albertans rely on.The economic recovery plan is also diversifying our economy. We know that UCP Government also created the lowest taxes for business in Canada and 44 US States to put Alberta on a path for economic growth and success which will help spur an estimated $13 billion in growth).You know that Because of the work of UCP government, Keystone XL construction is underway, with shovels in the ground. It is no secret that this government was elected to create jobs, economy and pipelines and with Albertan have faced historic challenges in 2020 (a global health and economic crisis), they have completed 68% of their platform commitments that they got elected. So pretty clear if that tangible results or not!!
Liam O’Donnell – Sayid Ahmed yes government acted, as in Ottawa. Kenneys response was lackluster. I can’t say it was terrible, but it wasn’t glowing.And this turnaround with the irresponsible manner in which the province has rushed reopening, and the lack of funding or plan for school reopening a is almost criminal in its disregard for our children.The ucp keep claiming their policies will create jobs, yet so far, they’ve had the opposite effect.I have hopes about the infrastructure plan will be an exception. Though I find it comical that the only policy thus far with any hope of benefit for Albertans, is one that is oddly similar to the ndp plan.However even all those jobs do not make up for jeopardizing half of our doctors with this poorly thought out war with physicians, in the middle of a health emergency, nor does it make up for the attacks on Alberta workers which would make those jobs far less lucrative than whey could have been.Perhaps you haven’t noticed, but albertans are starting to buy property in other provinces. Looking for work in other provinces. The exodus is beginning. Doctors don’t want to start their careers in Alberta because of ucp policies. And the worry that these fiscal incompetents are going to loot our pensions to fund their hair brained ideas like investing in a defunct pipeline that would only have benefitted the us, or allow aimco to bungle investments and lose billions like the public sector pensions.It’s past time albertans open our eyes to the train wreck in the legislature.No matter what you thought of the ndp, at no point were the ndp even a fraction as destructive as the ucp have been.
