Embattled independent MP Blair Wilson made public declarations of innocence in towns throughout his riding last week, resolving to continue his political career.
"I feel very strongly and I'm very confident that each and every one of those allegations will eventually prove to be wrong," said Wilson during a call-in radio show on the Sunshine Coast Jan 17.
It was the first time Wilson made a public appearance on the Sunshine Coast since allegations of election spending improprieties surfaced in November, launching an Elections Canada investigation and leading to the Liberal Party nixing him as a future candidate.A few days after the radio show, during the Squamish Chamber of Commerce AGM Saturday (Jan. 19), Wilson told The Chief he intends to campaign again for the position of federal representative.
"I hope to run in the next election in some capacity. In what capacity I'm not sure yet."
Wilson said on the radio he hopes to see an outcome to the Elections Canada investigation soon. Wilson said he's committed to working with Elections Canada and he's looking forward to bringing the investigation to a close as quickly as possible. When a listener asked how his federal election campaign would be affected if called before Elections Canada wraps up their investigation, Wilson said he was unable to comment.
"I can't read the tea leaves for the future and don't know what's going to happen - we'll cross that bridge when we come to it."It's a bit of a waiting game now. I was hoping to get the results before Christmas, but that didn't happen. We're very hopeful and confident that Elections Canada will come out with their findings as soon as possible."
Wilson also commented on the Liberal Party's announcement that he was not welcome as their candidate in the next federal election.
"When it's hot in the kitchen some people want to get out of the kitchen. Right now the spotlight is definitely on myself and this issue. It's an important issue and I want to clear it as quickly as possible," Wilson said."I'm a Liberal at heart. The values and principles that I care about are Liberal values."
Wilson said there are pros and cons to being an independent MP. He said one of the downsides is not having access to the Liberal research bureau that he did before, but feels he can still be an effective representative for this riding.
"Seventy per cent of the job that Members of Parliament do, regardless of which party they represent, is dealing with constituency issues. My position hasn't changed on the issues. The offices are open and we're going to continue to work as hard for the people as we did before."
-files from Laura Hendrick, The Chief
