Dear Editor,
It’s hard to believe, but it’s been nearly 4four years since Jose Figueroa walked out of the Walnut Grove Lutheran Church after living there for about two years. I was there to witness the joyous moment.
Jose had many supporters, and I was one of these.
In the year before the above joyous moment, I had talked to many government departments, but everyone was either indifferent, or like Canada Border Services Agency, sounded more like a band of rogue operatives in a Mission Impossible movie than a government agency. So I wanted to try something different as we were not getting anywhere with the standard approaches.
I love it when I visit organizations and present a problem, and the president picks up the phone and instantly the whole issue is resolved. So, I went shopping for such a person. As it happened, I bumped into Leon Jensen on Canada Day 2015. He was campaigning for the Liberal Party. He thought it was plainly ridiculous that the Conservatives were in favour of pushing through the deportation order and promised to do something after the election.
In contrast, I visited the Conservative MP Mark Warawa’s office on July 27, 2015, and was told to mind my own business. After standing in the office for 1 ½ hours, I eventually did arrange a meeting with Mark Warawa and was told he could do nothing about almost anything as he was just a regular MP, who were powerless.
I wondered, however, if he was being muzzled by Conservative leaders as I’d had similar experiences with right wing politicians who appear to favour only the really rich and powerful and are willing to throw court orders, laws, morals, ethics, and decency under the bus?
I had a meeting with Jose and Leon at the church on Oct. 21, 2015, just two days after the election and by Dec. 23, 2015, Jose walked out of the church. Leon wasn’t even an MP, but he still used his connections to get the job done. Leon is a former military colonel, officer, and manager with the Canadian Forces, and I guess he is just used to getting things done.
Politically I favour non-partisan-style governments, but this is clearly a case which demonstrates that the Liberals and especially Leon Jensen have a better attitude in doing the right thing.
Ben Wiens, Langley Township
