November 19, 1998

Ungava's PQ candidate: "We've delivered the merchandise"

Ungava's PQ incumbent, Michel Létourneau, says Nunavik Inuit should vote for him, not his party.

JANE GEORGE
Nunatsiaq News

MONTREAL — A vote for the Parti Québécois in the Ungava riding on November 30 is a vote for the candidate, not a show of support for Quebec's sovereignty.

At least, that's the position of the PQ incumbent, Michel Létourneau, who has represented Ungava within the Quebec national assembly for the past four years.

Létourneau won the last election by a margin of 1905 votes, receiving 14 per cent more of the total vote than the Liberal candidate.

Now he's urging voters not to let the threat of another referendum on sovereignty stop them from reelecting his party.

Létourneau hopes that voters will weigh his achievements before deciding where to put their support.

"It wouldn't make sense to devote yourself to political life if people were going to say, 'Yes, he's good, but we're not going to vote for him," he said.

Létourneau, who visited Nunavik many times during his term, has lived in Chibougamau and other northern Quebec communities for more than 20 years.

In his opinion, this long-time connection with the North makes him a more credible candidate in the riding than the Liberal's Claude Eric Gagné, who comes from the Lac St. Jean region.

Létourneau dismissed Gagné, his main rival, as a "peddler," someone just passing through the riding.

He said that Nunavimmiut should consider the PQ's strong commitment to developing their region, economically and socially, before deciding how to vote.

The PQ government has contributed $900,000 towards new mining ventures and is also underwriting the creation of a network of low-cost, public daycares throughout Nunavik.

These daycares, pointed out Létourneau, are also a source of jobs in the region.

"We've delivered the merchandise," he said. "We've shown that we want to develop the region."

Létourneau said visits by various Quebec cabinet ministers and Premier Lucien Bouchard also show that he has done a good job as the member who represents Nunavik in the national assembly.

"The proof is that if I was bad, the ministers wouldn't come to the region," he said.

If re-elected, Létourneau said that he will keep working to improve the standard of living in Nunavik, putting special emphasis on more access to services, health care and housing.

"We've made progress," he said. "We have to keep working at it.

Létourneau said that Quebec considers Inuit to be "important citizens". He said that they have a real place in Quebec, even suggesting that aboriginals may be more respected in Quebec than elsewhere.

"Anglophone provinces don't understand our society," he said.

Létourneau added that Inuit have nothing to fear, if Quebec does someday become a sovereign state, because the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement will stand and Canada will still have to deal closely with Quebec.

"We would continue to have the same relationship with the Canadian government," he said.

Létourneau likely won't deliver his campaign message in person to Nunavik because the bulk of his official $26,000 campaign budget- only $1.25 per voter — will be spent on printed materials, such as posters and flyers.

But he's hoping that Nunavik voters will recall his record when they mark their ballots.

"People aren't stupid. I'm not worried. I've done a lot for Inuit and they will remember me when they vote. I'm confident," said Létourneau, echoing the PQ campaign slogan, "j'ai confiance."