The Conservatives are pressing for key federal police bodies and a representative from the Prime Minister’s Office to appear before a House of Commons committee. They expect an explanation regarding the international humiliation spurred when a man who served with a Nazi regiment in the Second World War was given a standing ovation in Parliament.
Stephanie Kusie, Alberta’s MP, revealed her plan to call for the inclusion of witnesses from the RCMP, the CSIS, Parliamentary Protective Service, and the Sergeant-At-Arms for the House of Commons in the upcoming operations committee meeting scheduled for Thursday.
The motion remarkably excludes any representation from the office of the former Speaker, Anthony Rota.
Rota resigned on Wednesday, after expressing regret for the gaffe of inviting Yaroslav Hunka – a World War II veteran who served under the Nazi-led Waffen-SS Galicia Division in Ukraine – to the House of Commons. Hunka was invited to listen to the speech by Ukraine President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on September 22.
Rota admitted sole responsibility for the debacle, expressing regret for not thoroughly delving into Hunka’s military past. He introduced Hunka as a “Ukrainian hero and a Canadian hero”, who contested for Ukraine’s independence during the Second World War.
Earlier it was reported, Hunka had pledged allegiance to Nazis formed Waffen-SS Galicia Division that was voluntarily created to repel the Soviet Union.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau offered a formal apology on behalf of all MPs on Wednesday. He maintained that the invite was Rota’s decision, and neither he nor anyone from his office prior knew about Hunka’s inclusion.
Despite Trudeau’s remarks, Conservatives believe that he is accountable for the sequence of events that transpired during Zelenskyy’s visit. They argue that Trudeau should have ensured rigid scrutiny from security, intelligence, and diplomatic agencies for all the attendees.
“Yet the prime minister let this chamber witness an extraordinary, unparalleled global disgrace,” remarked Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre Wednesday.
Trudeau defended himself, accusing Poilievre of spreading misinformation and using the event for partisan gain. He reiterated that exercising their rights does not imply the government should meddle or scrutinize their invites.
The debate in Parliament is now around how best to prevent such an event from repeating in the future.
Liberal MP Anthony Housefather suggests a vetting process for guests to be publicly acknowledged, whenever a foreign leader is received. The process, he suggests, should go beyond assessing physical security threats.
He clarified that the security agencies like RCMP or CSIS needn’t determine attendance eligibility, but rather furnish relevant details about the guest to MPs for them to make informed decisions.
