‘It’s not normal to have a city where citizens don’t feel safe,’ says mayoralty candidate
On opening day last week of the campaign for the City of Montreal’s municipal elections scheduled around a month from now, Ensemble Montréal mayoralty candidate Soraya Martinez Ferrada took the high road when asked during an interview with Nouvelles Parc Extension News whether she thought it might be easy to defeat the incumbent Projet Montréal party.
Martinez Ferrada was the main speaker at an Ensemble Montréal launch held at a former church converted into an events venue on Adam St. in the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve district in east-end Montreal.
She’s focused on the task
“I don’t take into account what my adversaries are doing, I only take into account where I am at,” said the former federal Liberal Minister of Tourism and Economic Development Quebec, who was also the city councillor for Saint-Michel from 2005 to 2009.
While saying that her team of candidates was nearly complete, she continued, “I’m not only offering Montrealers myself as mayor, but a full team behind me that is ready to serve Montrealers and ready to govern. So, I don’t do politics on the backs of my rivals. I only do politics for Montrealers.”
That said, Martinez Ferrada didn’t deny that Projet Montréal had committed a good number of gaffes during the eight years they’ve been in power at Montreal City Hall.
Not a normal state of affairs
Among the issues she raised in a pep talk to an audience of loyal supporters and invited guests were basic things Projet Montréal seemingly forgot, especially in the last four years, such as street repairs, efficient garbage removal and rats proliferating in neighbourhoods.
“What I’m saying is that it’s not normal to have a city where citizens don’t feel safe – especially in a city like Montreal,” she said. “And it’s not normal to have people sleeping on the streets. And it’s not normal to have a city that’s so dirty that you see rats on the street.
“So, what I’m saying is that because all these things aren’t normal, we need an administration that will tackle these issues and offer a new perspective, new ideas. And that is us,” she added.
Meets blue collar workers
Among the issues Soraya Martinez Ferrada may find herself addressing if she becomes Montreal’s next mayor is her administration’s relationship with the city’s unionized blue-collar workers, who currently are in an unresolved contract negotiation dispute with the city.
She got a preview of things that may come when a delegation of blue collars turned up for the Ensemble Montréal campaign launch. They lingered peacefully with placards outside where Martinez Ferrada met them and listened patiently.
The November 2 election will mark the eighth time incumbent Parc Extension city councillor Mary Deros runs for Montreal City Council. She first won the seat in 1998. Among the candidates who also turned up at the campaign launch were Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension borough mayor candidate Sylvain Gariépy, Effie Giannou (Bordeaux-Cartierville) and Lemonia Strapatsas (Mile-End).
