In her book Christy Clark: Behind the Smile, author and former BC Liberal MLA Judy Tyabji recounts how former acclaimed Global BC reporter Jas Johal compared the two leaders in the 2013 provincial election.
As a reporter, Johal pondered who, between Premier Clark and then NDP leader Adrian Dix, would constituents want to have a beer with? Then answered his own question with “The answer is clear . . . Christy Clark,” proclaimed Johal.
Dix was “too uptight,” explained Johal, who left his job at Global to become an LNG lobbyist and is now a BC Liberal candidate in the farm-laden Richmond-Queensborough riding. The riding is effectively the former East Richmond riding, with the addition of a few NDP-leaning New Westminster residents, who comprise about 15 per cent of the riding’s population.
Door-knocking around Tait elementary, it’s understandable why Tyabji tapped on Johal to argue that “the personal touch can play a big role in helping voters connect with leaders.”
When asked about policies and ideologies, Johal frequently returns to how his experience as a foreign correspondent shaped his world view, leading him to believe that Clark’s government is on the right path.
“I’ve seen the worst in societies” and “I’ve seen extremes, left and right,” he said.
Johal described his upbringing in an immigrant family as a great example of the available opportunities in this province.
That personal touch, and world experience, is his strength, he said. And it’s an element that should prove valuable, as a non-Richmond resident vying to become MLA in a riding that had comfortably chosen fellow Liberal Linda Reid for the past 26 years.
“As a journalist, you’re used to meeting people of all walks of life . . . and meeting people who disagree with you. And that’s OK; I welcome that; I’m comfortable with that,” said Johal.
Clearly.
While about four in 10 households indicated support for the Liberals, one man was having none of Johal’s platform, digging into the Liberals’ record on affordability for the middle-class.
Johal encouraged the man to disconnect his door chain and stated the Liberals have a “strong economy” and low taxes. But the man pointed to rising costs such as MSP, BC Hydro and gasoline.
“But you know we have the fifth lowest hydro costs in North America, right?” asked Johal, one of three South Asian candidates in a riding with a large Southeast Asian and South Asian population.
Eventually, the two parted amicably, as Johal’s Cantonese-speaking campaign assistant jotted down the man’s convictions in her custom, mobile voter list app.
“There’s always going to be people who say, ‘We want more,’” he said.
But, “I’m a centrist; I’m a pragmatist.
“You’ve got to get things done in this world,” said Johal, who repeats that government requires balance, and social services will follow from a strong economy.
In reply to critics who note that despite a strong economy, there has been an increase in wealth disparity, Johal said, “It’s not perfect, and we can have that debate.”
Regarding key local issues, Johal stands by his party’s platform: the Liberals had “guts” to implement the popular foreign homebuyers’ tax, but any more regulatory measures would imperil the housing market; the George Massey Tunnel replacement bridge and highway expansion is necessary, despite opposition from the majority of the region’s mayors; and export-oriented farming is the best way to go, although diversifying crops for local consumption is a discussion that can be had.
After all, Johal noted, local food security is an issue that’s being tackled all around the world, reportedly.
