- 注册
- 2002-10-07
- 消息
- 402,198
- 荣誉分数
- 76
- 声望点数
- 0
Less than two weeks before voting day, prominent election signs have begun to appear in Ottawa West-Nepean describing Conservative candidate Abdul Abdi as a “local police officer.”
The billboard-sized signs, which feature Abdi’s name and photograph, include a sentence saying he is a “local police officer currently on unpaid leave to run in this election.”
Abdi, who came to Canada from Somali as a refugee when he was 14, has been a constable with the Ottawa Police Service for 11 years.
Though political candidates routinely describe what they do for a living in campaign literature and at public events, they rarely refer to their occupations on election signs.
“It’s rather unusual, although I do recall a Liberal candidate a few elections ago in Vancouver putting ‘Professor’ before his name on signs to indicate his position,” said Kenneth Carty, an emeritus professor of political science at the University of British Columbia.
Asked why Abdi’s campaign added a reference to his profession to some signs, campaign manager Austin Jean said they “highlight the fact that, as a police officer, he has been keeping our streets in Ottawa West-Nepean safe for the past 11 years.”
Abdi has emphasized his police credentials in his campaign literature, which touts a tough-on-crime agenda and says he would bring “real law enforcement experience” to Parliament Hill if elected.
That’s looking increasingly unlikely, however. A poll published this week by the Citizen showed Abdi trailing his Liberal opponent in Ottawa West-Nepean, Anita Vandenbeld, by 18 points.
Matt Skof, president of the Ottawa Police Association, said Abdi’s sign is laid out in a “neutral, generic way” and does not mention the Ottawa Police Service by name.
“The service would have concerns if he was using (campaign) literature that showed which service he is identified with,” Skof said. The sign “identifies his profession and it’s for the public to make a decision whether or not that’s credible.”
It also makes clear that Abdi is on unpaid leave and is not functioning as a police officer during the campaign, he said.
Officials at Elections Canada said the Canada Elections Act generally doesn’t regulate the content of signs and other election advertising as long as it has been authorized by a political party.
Nelson Wiseman, director of the Canadian Studies Program at the University of Toronto, said Abdi’s police background is a “strong card” for him.
“For the Conservatives it’s great, because they can say, ‘Here’s a visible minority and he’s a police officer.’ It wraps both of those things into one package,” he said.
“But it does suggest to me that the Conservatives don’t have a chance there,” Wiseman said. “I don’t think they expect to win that riding.”
dbutler@ottawacitizen.com
twitter.com/ButlerDon
— With files from Shaamini Yogaretnam
查看原文...
The billboard-sized signs, which feature Abdi’s name and photograph, include a sentence saying he is a “local police officer currently on unpaid leave to run in this election.”
Abdi, who came to Canada from Somali as a refugee when he was 14, has been a constable with the Ottawa Police Service for 11 years.
Though political candidates routinely describe what they do for a living in campaign literature and at public events, they rarely refer to their occupations on election signs.
“It’s rather unusual, although I do recall a Liberal candidate a few elections ago in Vancouver putting ‘Professor’ before his name on signs to indicate his position,” said Kenneth Carty, an emeritus professor of political science at the University of British Columbia.
Asked why Abdi’s campaign added a reference to his profession to some signs, campaign manager Austin Jean said they “highlight the fact that, as a police officer, he has been keeping our streets in Ottawa West-Nepean safe for the past 11 years.”
Abdi has emphasized his police credentials in his campaign literature, which touts a tough-on-crime agenda and says he would bring “real law enforcement experience” to Parliament Hill if elected.
That’s looking increasingly unlikely, however. A poll published this week by the Citizen showed Abdi trailing his Liberal opponent in Ottawa West-Nepean, Anita Vandenbeld, by 18 points.
Matt Skof, president of the Ottawa Police Association, said Abdi’s sign is laid out in a “neutral, generic way” and does not mention the Ottawa Police Service by name.
“The service would have concerns if he was using (campaign) literature that showed which service he is identified with,” Skof said. The sign “identifies his profession and it’s for the public to make a decision whether or not that’s credible.”
It also makes clear that Abdi is on unpaid leave and is not functioning as a police officer during the campaign, he said.
Officials at Elections Canada said the Canada Elections Act generally doesn’t regulate the content of signs and other election advertising as long as it has been authorized by a political party.
Nelson Wiseman, director of the Canadian Studies Program at the University of Toronto, said Abdi’s police background is a “strong card” for him.
“For the Conservatives it’s great, because they can say, ‘Here’s a visible minority and he’s a police officer.’ It wraps both of those things into one package,” he said.
“But it does suggest to me that the Conservatives don’t have a chance there,” Wiseman said. “I don’t think they expect to win that riding.”
dbutler@ottawacitizen.com
twitter.com/ButlerDon
— With files from Shaamini Yogaretnam
查看原文...
