“Fake Apologies” from Ford Minister Embroiled in Greenbelt Scandal are Not Enough

Premier Doug Ford Must Fire his Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister, Steve Clark

Statement from Ontario’s Official Opposition NDP Leader Marit Stiles followed by a Note on this growing candal by journalist Doug Draper

Posted September 1^st, 2023 on Niagara At Large

Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles

Marit Stiles, Leader of the Official Opposition NDP issued the following statement after Premier Ford expressed his confidence in Minister Clark, who still refuses to resign, even after the Integrity Commissioner’s blistering report:

“This Minister broke the law with his involvement in these dirty deals.

Ontarians deserve so much better than fake apologies. His words are meaningless without any action to back them up.

Ontarians have lost all trust in this Minister and he needs to go.

The Premier needs to step up, show some leadership, kick Clark out of cabinet. Then get us all back in the Legislature so we can restore all of these lands back to the Greenbelt.”

A Note from Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper –

Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Steve Clark. This shameless creep has got to go.

As the scandal over the threat the Ford Government and its buddies in the development industry pose to our precious Greenbelt lands rages on, Ford and Clark continue to shamelessly double down on their bogus claim that we have no choice but to destroy what Ford calls “chunks” of the Greenbelt to build new housing.

Following two scathing reports on this scandal, released this August by Ontario’s Auditor General and Integrity Commissioner, Ford also continues to say he has faith in his ethically bankrupt minister Steve Clark and will not give him the boot.

I believe Ford won’t fire Clark because he knows that Clark is doing his bidding and that of closely knit developers that stand to make billions destroying some of our province’s best food-growing lands in the Greenbelt.

File photo by Doug Draper, Niagara At Large

I hope and pray that media organizations like The Globe and Mail, Toronto Star and CBC will continue working to get to the bottom of the corruption at play here, and that citizens across Ontario will continue to press for justice here until the day we can turf this Ford government out.

In an age of climate crisis, potential food scarcity and a housing affordability crisis that can and must be addressed by fixing the real root causes, we cannot afford any more of the ignorance and arrogance of Doug Ford and his enablers.

• Doug Draper, Niagara At Large

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