New Delhi: The House of Commons of Canada elected Greg Fergus as its new speaker on Tuesday, making the Liberal Party MLA the first Black Canadian to hold the position since the previous speaker unknowingly invited a former Nazi soldier to Parliament. Had resigned.
Members of the 338-seat House voted for Fergus in a secret ballot. Fergus finished ahead of candidates including fellow Liberal MP Sean Casey, Conservative Chris D’Entremont and Green Party leader Elizabeth May.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said, “Today you are the first black Canadian to be speaker.” “This should be inspiring to all Canadians, especially younger generations who want to get involved in politics.”
The House Speaker is meant to be an impartial arbiter of the parliamentary process, who tries to maintain order and decorum during debates. The Speaker votes only to break ties and plays a formal role as the institutional representative of Parliament.
Former speaker Anthony Rota, a member of the ruling Liberal Party, resigned last week. He took full responsibility for inviting to the House Yaroslav Hanka, a 98-year-old Ukrainian of Polish origin, who served in one of Adolf Hitler’s Waffen SS units during World War II, when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke on September 22. Was.
Without knowing Hunka’s full background, Rota publicly recognized him as a Ukrainian veteran and a hero who had moved to Canada, prompting Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to formally apologize for the mistake last week. Had to ask.
The role of Speaker carries a salary increase of approximately C$93,000 ($68,000) per year, which is added to the C$194,600 base salary for an MLA, and an official country estate in the Gatineau Hills of Quebec.
