WATCH ABOVE: The Wildrose party says the NDP is pushing communism on Albertans and is making those accusations public via pamphlets written in Cantonese. As Tracy Nagai reports while the NDP is crying foul, there’s an even bigger challenge both parties will have to face.
CALGARY – With just days until a local by-election, the battle over Calgary-Foothills is getting nasty.
The Wildrose Party says the NDP is pushing communism on Albertans and is making those accusations public via pamphlets written in Cantonese.
While the NDP is crying foul, there’s an even bigger challenge both parties will have to face. And that’s getting voters – to vote.
As election day draws nearer, it’s a sprint to the finish.
Hours filled with door knocking, a chance to try and win over potential voters.
There’s also a flurry of activity at the NDP headquarters, with one piece of literature that has the party in a huff.
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A label found in a Wildrose pamphlet. It’s written in Cantonese but translated, the statement reads:
“Right now, Wildrose Party is fighting hard to protect job creation, but the NDP intends to push the outdated ideas of communism and socialism, endangering Albertan’s livelihoods.”
Bob Hawkesworth disagrees and is confident that voters will see through the statement.
“People know Bob Hawkesworth, what they see is what they get and they have 30 years experience and they know that label is inaccurate and untrue,” Hawkesworth said. “It’s something the Wildrose will say in Cantonese, but won’t say it in English and for them to think this kind of manipulation of the Chinese community is appropriate, is just wrong headed.”
But the Wildrose deny any deception with information being disseminated in several languages.
“We believe that reflecting the demographics of a riding are important and speaking in a language that may be more comfortable to them,” said Wildrose campaign manager Cameron Davis said.
As for the use of the word communism, Davies says their message is straight forward in both languages.
“What was reiterated to me was that the words communism and socialism in Chinese, although they have slight variations in the characters essentially mean the same thing and that Chinese readers understand them to be synonymous.”
Despite this battle between the two parties, the bigger challenge that all the candidates must deal with – is how to get weary voters out to the polls in a riding faced with three provincial elections in less than a year and a federal election just around the corner.
Voters in Calgary-Foothill head to the polls on Thursday.
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