BELIEVE IN PRINCIPLES, VALUES, RESPECT PROMISES, LAWS

BY JAVED ZAHEER

TORONTO: Honesty will always remain the best policy, accept it or not. An honest person firmly believes in principles and values and truly respects promises and laws. His thinking and approach is purely positive and constructive. This is the secret of his success. People trust and follow him blindly because they have faith in him.

While the world population is increasing rapidly, the number of honest persons is decreasing faster. Problems are multiplying by each day and piling up with no solutions in sight. This is just because of our own faults and erosion of values. We have lost trust and confidence in ourselves and as a result fail to differentiate between the good and bad, right and wrong.

Despite the universal fact now that politicians are least trusted, we blindly choose and follow the wrong leadership and expect miracles. What we get from such leadership, everybody knows. So, we must have faith and confidence in ourselves and must never forget the lesson that without proper judgment and accountability we can never find true leadership and produce positive results.

On June 9, 2004, I had the opportunity to meet once again Frank Klees, a person who mesmerizes the people, particularly the shrewd media and critics, not with his tricks and gimmicks but with his sound character and contributions. Very few politicians and leaders enjoy such respect and standing.

My eldest daughter, Sana Javed, a college student, who like most others hates dirty politics and refuses to accompany me to such meetings, was highly impressed by this personality and his message. She listened to him and became his fan. Truth prevailed with no politics and catches involved. Same was the case with my wife, Sabiha Javed, and many others, who keep themselves away from politics and yellow journalism. They enjoyed every moment of the proceedings. They now believe in his leadership and want him to become the leader of the Conservative Party and premier of Ontario. By w! inning their hearts and support through understanding and truth was indeed a great victory for Frank Klees, MPP, Oak Ridges.

Frank Klees was the chief guest at the dinner given in his honor by Shahid Hashmi, Chairman, CanPak Chamber of Commerce, and his wife Seema Hashmi at the Shahnawaz Restaurant in Mississauga, which is gaining popularity for delicious food and meetings. The purpose was to introduce him to the media, which was present in almost full strength. Also present on the occasion was a leading personality of the South Asian community and the pride of Canada, Shanul Haq Haqqee. Syed Aftab Rizvi was the Master of Ceremony. The attendance was remarkable and included renowned figures of the community in large numbers.

The proceeding was simply superb. Briefly I could state only that he deserves the appreciation, being a good human being and a man of commitment. The future will no doubt testify the same. His rejection like others will occur only when he forgets the people and principles.

Frank Klees discussed about his political career and how he entered politics. He explained the role of Conservatives and said they must realize the importance of being involved in the community. They must help those who cannot help themselves. They must not support anti-people policy.

He said ordinary people must be motivated to come forward and help form policies. Their opinion is very important for formation of a public policy, good system and future of the country. It is essential to know what is in their heart and mind. The existing system does not allow the ordinary people to get involved in policies.

Frank, with tears in his eyes, praised his father, Frank Sr., who he said served quietly and practically and inspired him. He tries to follow his footsteps.

He explained the reasons for failure of the Conservative Party in the last elections and said: “Some people took over the decision making process and hijacked the party. The result was the collapse of leadership and party. Now we have to get back with a clean slate and as a political party based on principles and values. We must give the government the essence of democracy. The people the choice and the opportunity to speak against any legislator and legislation.”

“We must give the people the power of accountability. There is no accountability now. Often people smell but don’t know what is wrong. They are helpless and speechless. The government shuffles the ministers just to keep the people confused and away from the shady happenings, “ he stated.

He disclosed: “I have 30 years of experience and was first elected in 1995. Till today I am not satisfied with the functioning of the governments. There is a lot to be done to meet expectations of the people.”

Frank said: “I want qualified people in the government and courageous steps to ensure accountability. I have the passion to know and what is to be done. Allow ministers and caucus members to make changes. I know where the landmines are. I am against running away from problems and issues. We must find the solutions with the support of the people and the media. It is in the interest of the families and the future generation.”

He said the media must come up to the expectations of the people. The coverage must be objective and proper and not distorted. Most of his speeches are distorted, he stated. The media cannot to be fully blamed, as it is our fault also that we don’t initiate, he added.

Frank said he would prioritize the importance of communication. A two-way communication with media is necessary for the government. Also he is working on a technology to remove language barrier so that the people could understand the messages easily and instantly. This would be a great achievement in creating understanding.

Frank Klees said: “In the last election we focused on our aims and objectives and conducted ourselves with civility. You cannot play and should not play with people. It is wrong by all means and should not be part of any campaign.”

He said: “The Premier of Ontario, Dalton McGuinty, should be made accountable as he not only broke his promise of not increasing the taxes but broke the law as well. Within few months his popularity graph has fallen to a very low level. If I were in his place I would have gone to the people, told them the truth that there was no choice except to raise the taxes and hold a referendum for its acceptance and approval. This should be the way for any such issue. Dalton McGuinty avoids questions, as he has no answers. You can watch the proceedings on the TV and judge for yourself.”

Frank said: “We must learn from our past mistakes and failures. Some people withdrew decision-making to the premier office. We were not involved in decisions. The respect and tradition was disregarded and we were taken on the wrong path. The departure from commitment, principles, values and ethics were the main reasons for our defeat and collapse.”

“I was personally offended by what happened in the 2003 elections. I knew we were in trouble. If you see the results, you will find that only those people were rejected who did not meet the expectations and played with the people. They were not the committed ones,” he stated.

During the questions and answers session, Frank Klees was bombarded with several spinning questions. Commenting on a question on Israel’s policies, he said that his personal view is: “We must find solutions based on justice. I cannot see the destruction of people, homes and lost of lives. We must start the dialogue with respect to ensure justice and respect. Our job as a human being is to ensure justice. It is really painful that we cannot find a peaceful solution.”

Ishrat Nasim of Radio Carvan strongly criticized the participation of Police Chief Julian Fantino in a rally `Walk With Israel’. She told Frank Klees to take notice of such racist attitude seriously and act accordingly. She said even the Foreign Minister was informed but he turned a deaf ear and till now nothing has been done. “How do Muslims expect justice and protection under such circumstances,” she stated.

On a question of gay marriage, he said: “I will keep challenging all such decisions because I believe in traditional definition of marriage. However, we must respect the choice and belief of others as well. It is better to respect each other. We will call it civil union or give it any other name but not term it marriage. Presently decisions are being made on such issues because legislators don’t have the courage and they leave it on the judges and courts. Legislators must stand and speak up.”

On a question of racial profiling, he said: “I believe that as Canadians we must share the true principles of democracy. I believe in the principles and values of democracy. We must focus on creation of understanding. We can only live together if we understand each other. Without understanding nothing positive can be achieved.”

On a question about immigrants, Frank Klees said: “Immigrants are essential and welcome because they are backbone of the country. They are contributing tremendously despite all odds. Unfortunately, we are not letting people know the reality and the importance of immigrants. We definitely have a perception problem. I will open the door for them. I want my party to have the largest membership comprising people of all communities, which will reflect the true picture of the party and Ontario.”

On a question about problems, promises and mistakes, he said: “We forget that in 1994 the situation was very bad in all respect. Ontario was in the last place in the country. The province was upside down. It was like coming into a bankrupt corporation. In 1999, we performed incredibly and help Ontario regain the first place. It was the time to benefit from the economic revolution and enjoy. Unfortunately, people keep forgetting the past. They committed grave mistakes, despite warnings. Now we will make sure that past mistakes ar! e not repeated and principles and values of democracy are practically followed and implemented. People will be taken into confidence for development and implementation of policies and solution of the problems.”

Frank said: “Issues like teachers’ strike could be settled through negotiations and in a professional manner. Teachers are highly respected and they should be treated accordingly. Our children spend most of the time with them. Their problems need to be studied and solved. I don’t pretend to have all of the answers. I want to learn. The structure of policy development is based on belief.”

Earlier, Syed Aftab Rizvi, while introducing Frank Klees, said: “We are conservatives but have a liberal approach. We will choose only the one who is best for the party and the people.” He hoped that Dr Jamil Dar, a highly respected member of the community and society, would organize fund-raising for Frank Klees.

The praise and support for Frank Klees by the audience and media was tremendous. Surinder Gill, also a renowned figure, said: “We are here to decide what we can do for Frank Klees and not what he will do for us. We must support him because he is a man of commitment and good qualities.”

Dr Jamil Dar said: “Frank Klees keeps his promises when he makes them. He understands our problems and will solve them, like in the past. He believes in practicality. He is, no doubt, a man of commitment.”

Shahid Hashmi and Gul Nawaz worked very closely with Frank Klees and he too acknowledged their hard work and contribution. Shahid Hashmi spoke about his close association with Frank Klees. He said: “Frank motivates you and gives you the energy. Whenever issues were brought to him, he paid full attention and extended practical help. His achievements are notable. He deserves to become the leader of the party and premier of Ontario.”

Bashir Khan of Vision Pakistan presented gifts to Frank Klees and his wife Jaine on behalf of the media. He assured him: “We are all behind you. We want to see you as premier of Ontario.”

Fahim Hamid Ali, a world-renowned artist, too was highly impressed by the message and commitment of Frank Klees. He donated 25 of his precious paintings and assured him his full support. The proceeding of the painting exhibition would go to the fund raising, he stated.

Javed Malik, of Hum Sub Eik program and organizer of the famous Markham Mela, invited Frank Klees to start his election campaign from his Mela. Javed said: “Usually we don’t promote politicians but since we found Frank Klees as a genuine and concerned person and not a politician therefore we are extending him full support.”