Why Hasn’t Ahmed Hussen Resigned Yet?

Attempting to cast blame on the organization the government itself chose isn’t fooling anyone.

Is the Liberal government angry that they ‘unknowingly’ hired an anti-Semitic consultant to lecture Canadian broadcasters on racism?

Or are they angry they got caught?

They would love for you to believe it’s the former, yet I think we have a good sense that it’s the latter.

Let’s consider the line of reasoning the Liberals are using to try and worm their way out of this one:

In his statement, government minister Ahmed Hussen said “Antisemitism has no place in this country. The antisemitic comments made by Laith Marouf are reprehensible and vile.”

So far so good, we can all agree with that.

Hussen then says he has sent notice to “the Community Media Advocacy Centre (CMAC) that their funding has been cut and their project has been suspended.”

Also good.

But then, Hussen says “we call on CMAC, an organization claiming to fight racism and hate in Canada, to answer to how they came to hire Laith Marouf, and how they plan on rectifying the situation given the nature of his antisemitic and xenophobic statements.”

He then adds “we look forward to a proper response on their next steps and clear accountability regarding this matter.”

Now, what Hussen – or more accurately his staff – are doing here is a classic public relations move.

They’re distancing Hussen from CMAC, pinning the blame on that organization, and then trying to make it seem that Hussen is part of the wide range of Canadians demanding answers.

That’s why they use the word “we”, trying to make it look like there are two sides, and those sides are Hussen and everyone who is agree at CMAC on one side, and CMAC on the other side.

Here’s the problem though.

It’s Hussen’s department who hired CMAC.

And, as noted by Hillel Neuer of UN Watch (an organization that works to hold the UN accountable for their rampant hypocrisy like putting ruthless dictatorships on human rights councils), Hussen is trying to take Canadians for fools:

“Mr. Minister: You are taking us for fools. You are calling on CMAC to answer “how they came to hire Laith Marouf”? Are you not aware that he and his wife Gretchen King *are* CMAC? That they and CMAC share the same address? That it was you and Marouf who announced this program?”

Further, as Zev Ben Meir explains, it seems CMAC has a grand total of two consultants, of which Marouf is one:

“Gretchen King (Marouf’s wife) and Laith Marouf are CMAC. They are the entire organization with one additional consultant

The question is why did you hire them? Stop passing the buck. You’re at fault. Own it.

Stop lying”

Let’s also take a look at the official press release – dated April 14 2022 – in which both Laith Marouf and Ahmed Hussen are quoted:

“Mr. Laith Marouf, Senior Consultant, CMAC: “As an organization with a commitment and history of mobilizing grassroots knowledge to inform media policy-making in Canada, CMAC is excited to launch the ‘Building an Anti-Racism Strategy for Canadian Broadcasting: Conversation & Convergence’ initiative with funding support from Canadian Heritage’s Anti-Racism Action Program. We see this as a timely intervention with the potential to shape how Racialized Canadians experience the media space. We are grateful to Canadian Heritage for their partnership and the trust imposed in us and commit to ensuring the successful and responsible execution of this project.”

The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion: “In Canada, diversity is a fact, but inclusion is a choice. Our government is proud to contribute to the initiative ‘Building an Anti-Racism Strategy for Canadian Broadcasting: Conversation & Convergence.’ Together, let’s continue to build a country that is better, fairer, and more inclusive for everybody, and work together to address issues such as the barriers faced by racialized Canadians. Thank you to CMAC for opening these discussions.””

Did Hussen thank CMAC without knowing anything about them?

Was he unaware that he was quoted in the press release?

The fact is, the Liberals thought they would just throw out a statement and make this whole thing go away, but that’s not happening.

They can’t spend years lecturing the country and acting holier-than-thou on racism, and then hire someone who makes vicious anti-Semitic remarks and just pretend nothing happened.

Real accountability would include Ahmed Hussen resigning, and the fact that he hasn’t resigned – and likely won’t – only goes to show how much our standards have been lowered when it comes to the performance of government officials.

Still, regardless of what Hussen does, Canadians must keep demanding accountability and keep spreading the word about the absolutely disgraceful hypocrisy of the Trudeau government.

Spencer Fernando

Photo – YouTube

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