The leader of the Parti Québécois (PQ) is asking the National Assembly to allow him to continue his job as vice-chancellor, even if he refuses to take the oath of office to the King of England in ten days.
“I will keep my word, I will be consistent,” Paul St-Pierre Plamonton told reporters at the Parti Québécois offices on Tuesday morning.
He argued that the monarchy costs the Canadian government $67 million each year. “It’s reminiscent of the colonial rule that led to the execution of the Patriots, the deportation of the Acadians, the Indian Act and the Indian reserves,” he said.
During the election campaign, the leader of the PQ promised not to swear allegiance to the King of England. Now that he’s been elected, he says he’s told the National Assembly he wants to take the oath only for the people of Quebec. Other PQ representatives will do the same.
Mr. Said Saint-Pierre Plamonton.
In practice, the delegates swear an oath to the people of Quebec and to the King of England. The leader of the PQ sees it as an aberration, as these two oaths are in his view conflicting of interest.
“If you know that these interests are conflicting, you cannot serve two masters. One cannot say on the one hand: I will be loyal and my work will be based on people’s interest. At the same time, tell me that I will be loyal and that my work will be for the benefit of the British Crown, the sovereign of another country,” he explained.
As a result, Paul St-Pierre Plamonton believes that the National Assembly must choose the side it will take: rally behind a sub-democratic election or remain loyal to the British Crown.
In the past, MPs preferred not to publicly swear the oath to the British monarch. This option does not apply to Paul St-Pierre Plamenton. “I won’t hide, I won’t go and sign something that doesn’t make sense in secret,” he said, does the National Assembly deny it? The main interested parties were content to say, “We’ll see.” “I hope they don’t block my access”.
He recalled that the oaths of office had already undergone some changes. The oath in French is not provided for by law, and a solemn declaration instead of the oath for atheists is now adopted without amendment to the constitution.
“We can say very well: in 2022, we have come to tolerate a common pledge of loyalty to the people and democracy. In my opinion there will be no consequences.
Paul St-Pierre Plamonton ruled that if there were to be prosecutions against him, they would have to come from the British Crown or the courts in Ottawa.
Watch his statement in the video above.
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