Young gun Liberal takes on key Surrey riding
Wed, October 08 2008
This 50-square-kilometre patch of manufacturing and light industrial turf on the eastern banks of the Fraser River has flip-flopped over the years between the left and the right, and was the riding of the late political maverick Chuck Cadman’s for three straight terms.
Two years ago, NDP star Penny Priddy claimed Surrey-North, and holds the seat today, though she is not running in the upcoming election.
Liberal candidate Marc Muhammad, a dynamic young businessman who has called the riding home for all of his 30 years, is the first to concede that this is not traditional Liberal stomping ground.
But then again, Marc Muhammad is not your traditional Liberal.
“Marc is very much a part of the new generation, the young guns in the Liberal party in Canada,” said Justin Trudeau, during a whistle stop this week at Muhammad’s bustling campaign office on King George Highway.
Born to a Pakistani businessman father and a Scottish mother who worked for 25 years as a trauma nurse at Surrey Memorial Hospital, Muhammad says participation in federal politics never entered his mind as a younger man wheeling and dealing in the business hubs of China and Dubai.
But two events would change the course of his life – the selfless sacrifice of his beloved brother, and an eight-hour conversation during a lay over at London’s Heathrow Airport.
“This is an opportunity that few people ever get,” he reflects today. “That opportunity to make a difference.”
Muhammad first felt the call to contribute to the “dramatic positive change” of his country in the aftermath of his brother Steven’s death nine years ago.
Driving through Surrey on his way to lunch, Steven was just 19 when he was killed in a car crash.
“He was driving along when a car pulled out, a subcompact with a family inside,” Muhammad recalls. “He knew he could avoid hitting them, so he veered left to avoid them.”
The car flipped and hit a pole.
“He made that decision,” says Muhammad. “They would have been dead, T-boned, no question.
“Yes,” he adds. “My brother is part of it.”
A few years later, en route to Dubai, Muhammad found himself in the company of “just a bunch of guys” killing time between flights.
“There was this CNN reporter, a Palestinian Jew, a Lebanese guy, a bunch of Chinese guys, a Canadian from Toronto, and a bunch of Jordanians,” he recalls. “We ended up in TGI Friday’s at Heathrow’s Terminal 3.”
For eight hours straight, they talked.
“What came out of that conversation was this: It doesn’t matter what background people are from, where they’re from, their religion, what they have, what they don’t have, when you have a typical family sitting down they care about one thing – they want a better life for their children,” says Muhammad. “And that’s it.”
“That’s something that has always stuck with me. From that point I did decide, ‘Yeah, it’s right to serve, it’s right to try to make a difference.’”
Articulate and worldly, Muhammad believes Surrey-North - where 36 per cent of the 112,000 population is immigrants - is representative of Canada’s untapped business potential on the international stage.
“We have a lot more to offer than what the U.S. is willing to buy from us,” he says.
“I’ve seen what I need to see - people want the Canadian brand. They are willing to pay that premium. We don’t have to compete day to day in the low quality, low-cost labour market.”
Muhammad believes Canada has the skill sets, the labour, and the expertise to become a driving engine in the international marketplace of the future.
“We are so far passed being a resource-only exporter,” he insists. “Canada is wasting its ability.
“And Surrey North is the nexus,” he adds. “We have the proximity to the border of the United States, we have the ports, we have access to Vancouver, we’re the gateway to Asia.”
Muhammad is running against Rachid Arab (NDP), Dan Kasamanga (Green) and, on the Conservatives ticket, Chuck Cadman’s wife, Dona, a rival Muhammad describes as a “cardboard candidate” who has been largely “invisible” in the 2008 federal campaign.
The young Liberal does not mince words when it comes to Dona Cadman, who he feels is under qualified and is trading on the memory of her husband.
“I don’t want to come across as a bully because I have a lot of respect for women” says Muhammad. “ I’m attacking her policy, I’m attacking her actions, I’m attacking her statements. You can swap out Ms. Cadman for any one else and my objections would be the same.”
Muhammad believes there is a “general perception” in the community that Cadman is “manipulating” the memory of her husband for her own political gain.
“And there are questions that are asked that she can’t answer – like, ‘What are you going to do for the country?’”
But the Liberal candidate says the greatest challenge he first encountered as he walked from home to home knocking on front doors was his name.
“One of the biggest objections I had to overcome in the beginning is my last name,” he says candidly. “ It’s a riding that possibly isn’t as friendly to foreign names as others.
“But that objection has gone away,” he continues. “ People know I’m there to make a difference. They’re looking at the person now. It was a big challenge it such a short period of time and no one expected it to happen, not even my head office.”
Muhammad believes the federal Liberals can bring “postive growth” to Canada, and is fully prepared to put his business interests into a blind trust and devote himself full time to Canada’s people and its future.
“With my skill set and experience, I truly believe I can make a difference,” he says. “But I’m not doing this for me.”
Marc Muhammad . . .
. . . On Crime
“Crime is an issue. But it is only one part of a larger issue. Poverty and mental illness and co-addiction contribute to it. Currently at Surrey Memorial Hospital, 50 per cent of beds taken up at any given time are a result of narcotic abuse. These people are sick; they’re mentally ill.
We need a combination of cracking down on crime, but also on providing the social care and the infrastructure these people need. Surrey can’t be a dumping ground forever; that’s what’s hurting the working stiff. If businesses are scared to invest, they won’t invest, they’ll go elsewhere.”
We need a combination of cracking down on crime, but also on providing the social care and the infrastructure these people need. Surrey can’t be a dumping ground forever; that’s what’s hurting the working stiff. If businesses are scared to invest, they won’t invest, they’ll go elsewhere.”
. . . On Immigration
“Most people in my riding are immigrants, and newer immigrants too, trying to make a better life for themselves and their families.
The immigration backlog has not improved under the Conservatives. What Canada needs to survive is skillful and resourceful people. Talk’s cheap; it’s in the action.”
The immigration backlog has not improved under the Conservatives. What Canada needs to survive is skillful and resourceful people. Talk’s cheap; it’s in the action.”
. . . On the Environment
“I think it’s a key issue. I think the Green Shift is a very, very important part in the next chapter of the history of Canada.
I think it is completely sustainable. I think it is the responsibility of Canada right now to take the initiative. And it won’t hurt our economy. We have opportunities that no one else has . . . B.C. we will flourish. We have some of the most innovative companies in the world right here in B.C.”
“I think it’s a key issue. I think the Green Shift is a very, very important part in the next chapter of the history of Canada.
I think it is completely sustainable. I think it is the responsibility of Canada right now to take the initiative. And it won’t hurt our economy. We have opportunities that no one else has . . . B.C. we will flourish. We have some of the most innovative companies in the world right here in B.C.”
. . On Childcare
“Most of my friends have kids and it’s $40 to $60 dollars day for childcare. The Conservatives $100 a month subsidy doesn’t go very far. Come on.
And if children are put in positions where they can’t flourish and parents have the additional stress of worrying about their kids and not being able to focus on work, everything comes to a standstill. This is a key issue.”
And if children are put in positions where they can’t flourish and parents have the additional stress of worrying about their kids and not being able to focus on work, everything comes to a standstill. This is a key issue.”
. . . On Afghanistan
“I do not believe we should be there in a combat roll. If you go back in history in Afghanistan, even back to Alexander the Great, no one’s going to take anything by force over there. The way the Pushtan tribes work is, when there’s no one else to fight, they fight each other.
We don’t need to be in this right now. What we need to be doing is peacekeeping, building infrastructure, teaching people how to feed themselves and put a little bit of money in their pocket. If you want to eliminate war, eliminate poverty.”
We don’t need to be in this right now. What we need to be doing is peacekeeping, building infrastructure, teaching people how to feed themselves and put a little bit of money in their pocket. If you want to eliminate war, eliminate poverty.”
. . . On Gay Marriage
“It’s not a lifestyle that I’m a part of or that I understand. But I understand discrimination. At the end of the day, I’m half white, half Pakistani. The point is, it’s discrimination and it’s not healthy for society. At the end of the day, you can’t tell people how to live their lives. And that’s what Canada’s about – it’s about choice.”
. . . On Abortion
“It’s not allowed in the Islamic religion, it’s completely unacceptable in that religion.
But you know what? We’re more than one religion and people have a right to choose in this country. So whatever any one’s personal beliefs may be, they should be put aside for the benefit of everyone.”
But you know what? We’re more than one religion and people have a right to choose in this country. So whatever any one’s personal beliefs may be, they should be put aside for the benefit of everyone.”
by Mata Press Service
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