Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

I remember well when Justin Trudeau made headlines in 2015 for a spot in Canada's coveted top office. His victory as a member of the federal Liberals made a big splash that was felt in many countries around the world. I guess we can see why his name was plastered all over international newspapers, magazines and news outlets from different television channels. Even people who haven't even heard of Canada's current prime minister at the time learned about him through these sources of information. He is young, charismatic and seemed progressive and open for opportunities. But not all that glitters is gold. It has been over five years since Justin Trudeau has been Canada's Prime Minister. We have seen plenty of surprises, and I have been surprised as well. Trudeau has done great things for the Canada too and I have noted them as well.

Like any politician, a candidate to any countries' top executive post as Commander-in-chief makes a bunch of promises to encourage the voter to vote for him or her. Sometimes, they will say anything to get your attention and it may seem groundbreaking, phenomenal, revolutionary even. They want the job and I believe anyone in his position would do the same thing. Unfortunately, politicians have a terrible track record of keeping promises. They have become stereotypes of lying crooks who could commit crimes and do things that will only benefit themselves. Every country around the world has experience with this. In certain nations, the situation has been be far worse and have led to unspeakable tragedy and pain to millions of its citizens.

I find Mr. Trudeau has done exactly that on his 2015 campaign to Ottawa. He promised reconciliation with First Nations Groups, more government transparency, a better voting system, improvement on women's rights, environmental protection and so on. Of course, like any other politician, many of his promises fell flat. He used billions of dollars of taxpayer money to purchase the Trans-Mountain pipeline that is supposed to carry bitumen to British Columbia's environmentally rich coastline. The fact that dangerous quantities and highly polluting bitumen flowing through important ecosystems and natural splendor such as the Rocky Mountains and ending up in the coast where diverse sea-life and mammals have been calling home for thousands of years is troublesome. If Trudeau is truly concerned about the environment, why support the pipeline? The benefits of oil are slipping away. Environmentally friendly energy sources are the future which will help us and the planet for many years to come. A lot of jobs and money can be generated with this incredible industry. Why not put billions of dollars of taxpayer money into that?

Trudeau has promised to reform the voting system. Instead of maintaining the current first-past-the-post voting system, he was opting for the more inclusive proportional representation system. I find this to be much better. More votes from citizens can be counted and used instead of throwing a lot of votes from other candidates away. The current system only allows the winning votes to count. The rest disappear. Not very efficient if you ask me. Sadly, Trudeau abandoned this plan.

Reconciliation with First Nations also didn't go accordingly to plan. To this day, there are countless aboriginal women who haven't had any justice along the highway of tears. Many of them disappeared, their remains found much later or haven't even been found yet. Missing aboriginal women is a serious problem for many aboriginal tribes. Their faith in the provincial and federal justice system hasn't always been high. In many cases, they never had faith in the government due to their wrongful treatment over the decades. Look no further than the residential schools, and systemic racism they have endured. The Mohawk in Québec is another great example. The gas pipeline and the actions the police have taken against protesting tribes in Northern British Columbia are also worth looking into. A formal apology has been made but I don't think it is enough.

One of the most scandalous events to ever take place under the Prime Minister's watch was the SNC-Lavalin affair. It has been reported that Trudeau tried to influence then Minister of Justice and Attorney-General Jody Wilson-Raybould over the handling of a criminal case concerning the construction company. The PMO claims there was no wrong-doing and was trying to save jobs and that the investigation and publication has caused an 'erosion of trust'. I don't know for sure what happened here. Unfortunately, it caused a lot of negative attention for the Prime Minister and the PMO.

The most recent scandal to hit Trudeau is the WE Charity controversy, in which Trudeau and Finance Minister Bill Morneau have had alleged conflict of interest allegations raised against them. Not only has WE Charity paid a lot of money to members of the Trudeau family, but Morneau was also found to have accepted expenditures and vacation from the charity. Trudeau and the Liberal Government are fighting these claims and are claiming no wrong-doing. I, personally, don't know enough about it to express my conclusion on the matter.

Trudeau has faced a lot of criticism over these issues. But what I have found most troubling are the extent some Canadians are wanting to go in expressing their displeasure. Death threats have increased against Trudeau. Bullying and harassment have also increased against him and his cabinet members. This is highly disturbing. No one has the right to wish violence and hatred towards Trudeau or any of his members in government. It is a crime, and people have been arrested and charged with uttering threats. I don't know why people have to go to extreme lengths in evoking hatred towards another person. Trudeau does have his shortcomings but he isn't a bad guy. He has done a terrific job in handling the COVID-19 pandemic across Canada and helping Canadian families and business to stay afloat in some way. I also liked how he stood up to Trump's bullying with the NAFTA renegotiations and tariffs the American president put in place to harm Canada. Trudeau isn't involved with nation-wide crippling devastation like Trump is with regards with his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, the racism and division he has caused, and constitutional infringements he created and expressed. Trudeau is nowhere close to being as bad as Trump. Despite the issues in Ottawa, I am not disappointed with the Prime Minister entirely. He has made some mistakes, but like I mentioned earlier, every politician makes them. Some are just worse than others.