They can scrub him, fix his hair and dress him properly but it hardly adds to his ability to lead. Patrick Brown might hold the title of Ontario Progressive Conservative Party Leader but does not make him one. Leadership is more than winning the leadership job by signing up more people from the Sub-Continent than there are members of the Conservative Party. Leadership is more than political tricks.
A leader frames objectives for those he or she seeks to lead. A leader voices the challenges and rationale of success. A leader carries a flag of courage for all to see. A leader also accepts the challenges of non-believers. A leader seeks to take new ground. A leader contributes. And a leader draws followers into the fray.
In nine years of being a Member of Parliament, Patrick Brown led nobody anywhere. While in a position of trust, he did not earn trust. In a position of authority, he authored nothing. He hid behind local charities to keep his name prominent and contributed nothing substantive in Ottawa or in his community. In the very few free votes in the House of Commons, he consistently voted against women’s rights.
But Ottawa was an end game for him. He had run out of options there. There was nothing brilliant about using his connections in the Sub-Continent (paid for by Canadian taxpayers) to sign up more new immigrants from there than there were members of his provincial party. It was a tactic for someone who could not compete fairly.
And nobody was questioning the legality of his sign-ups. The party rules are that everyone must pay their own membership. It was common knowledge among people from the Sub-Continent that paying the $10 fee was optional. To some, the $10 was a small gift. To others, it was $10 from the family’s food bill. Only the organizers knew the true figures.
And the new leader of Ontario’s Progressive Conservatives hardly cared. He was well funded and nobody questioned the accounting.
Brown bought the leadership but not all of Ontario’s Conservative caucus are willing followers. The MPP for Simcoe North who knew him best, Garfield Dunlop, quit to give Brown his seat. It also meant Garfield did not have to stay in his caucus. His key opponent for the leadership, Christine Elliott, never returned to Queen’s Park. You hardly blame her with all the squabbling that is going on there now.
It is now ten months since Patrick Brown took over the leadership of the Ontario Conservatives. What leadership?
-30-
Copyright 2016 © Peter Lowry
Complaints, comments, criticisms and compliments can be sent to [email protected]