Local Liberal Party candidate Dan Veniez is seeking an apology from incumbent Conservative John Weston, saying Weston campaign workers have distributed "lies and fabrications" aimed at damaging Veniez's reputation in advance of the May 2 federal election.
In a statement issued late Wednesday (April 20), the Veniez campaign said people wearing Weston buttons and T-shirts "were openly distributing copies of an email claiming that Veniez was in some way responsible for pension shortfalls incurred when the former Skeena Cellulose operation in Prince Rupert went into bankruptcy."
Weston's campaign denied having provided supporters with such materials.
"This is not about John Weston or his campaign," David Bromley, Weston's campaign manager, said in a statement issued on Thursday (April 21). "I want to be very clear. We deny Mr. Veniez's claims. At no time did this campaign provide supporters with any materials at any all-candidates' meetings regarding Dan Veniez and his involvement with New Skeena Cellulose."
Bromley told The Chief in a telephone interview that the Weston campaign also had nothing to do with a YouTube video clip related to the issue of Veniez' past dealings with New Skeena Cellulose and his stance on the protection of pensions of former Nortel employees.
Veniez, who was president of Skeena until September 2004, denies he was in any way responsible for any such pension shortfalls and accused the Weston campaign of "engaging in an outrageous smear campaign in a desperate attempt to protect his seat.
"This needs to stop now," Veniez said. "The allegations being promoted by his campaign workers are complete lies, full stop. The pension plans, union and non-union alike, were never compromised in any way.
"I call on John Weston to apologize for this remarkable lapse of ethical judgment, and to make it clear that he in no way endorses the lies and fabrications being distributed by people on his behalf, by people wearing his buttons."
The statement said the Veniez campaign was seeking an injunction from Elections Canada "to prevent further dissemination of false and misleading 'information' on the grounds that this is a clear breach of the Elections Act."
Veniez and Weston are both running to represent the West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky riding in Ottawa.
