Ford draws a crowd in Oshawa

By Dave Flaherty/The Oshawa Express

Members of Ford Nation were out in full-force this past weekend in Oshawa.
Doug Ford, the newly minted leader of the Ontario PC Party, spoke to enthusiastic supporters who packed the Canadian Corps Association Hall on Saturday, March 24.
Ford was joined by Oshawa PC candidate Bob Chapman, Whitby-Oshawa MPP Lorne Coe, Oshawa MP Colin Carrie and former Whitby-Oshawa MPP Christine Elliott, who finished second to Ford in the recent party leadership vote.
The former Toronto city councillor wasted little time in giving harsh criticism to Premier Kathleen Wynne and her Liberal government.
“Over the past few days, you’ve seen Kathleen Wynne jetting all over the province giving billions of dollars away, but the people are smarter than Kathleen Wynne,” Ford said.
Ford called Ontario’s $300 billion-plus debt load and $12 billion debt-servicing costs “staggering”.
“That’s $12 billion that could be going to families with children with autism, that’s $12 billion that could be building infrastructure and that is $12 billion wasted because Kathleen Wynne has zero respect for the taxpayers,” he said. “We will start making sure that we bring integrity, accountability, and honesty back to the taxpayers and making sure we bring integrity back to Queen’s Park.”
Ford also criticized what he called “secret backroom deals with Hydro One”, the number of public employees on the Sunshine List, hydro rates and last but not least, the Liberals’ proposed carbon tax.
“The carbon tax is a terrible, terrible tax. I’m not even sure why they put the word carbon in front of it,” Ford said.
The PCs would welcome former NDP and Liberal voters with open arms.
“Come join us and let’s take back the province. We still have another 75 days before we turn this province around, and once we all turn this province around, a new day will dawn in Ontario, a day of prosperity, a day of promise, a day of growth that this province has never seen before.”
After his speech, Ford was met with chants of his name and then spent well over an hour speaking with supporters and posing for pictures.
Before the event began, Chapman told The Oshawa Express he was thrilled to have the new party leader in his riding.
‘I think it’s great considering he’s only been the leader for a short amount of time, to come out to Oshawa to show people that he cares about the city as much as the candidates,” he said.
Chapman noted he plans to work closely with the other Conservative candidates in the region.
“We’re all working together, the five of us, to bring things to Durham Region. Because we know if something major happens in Oshawa, a new business or something, those workers will come from all across the region,” he explains.
The first-time provincial candidate says he’s spoken to voters at their doorsteps and received a lot of “positive reaction.”
“They are very tired of the Liberal government of 15 years, and the unaffordability of it, and they want a change.”
Chapman says people are looking for a “fiscally responsible” government, and that is the philosophy of the Conservative party when in power.