Liberal Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Navdeep Bains has announced his decision not to run in the next federal election. As a result, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has shuffled his Cabinet, with several existing members shifting to new portfolios.
One brand new Cabinet member has been named. Three-time Liberal MP winner Omar Alghabra joins another half-citizen, MP Ahmed Hussen, as Trudeau ‘s two Muslim-Canadian members of Cabinet.
MP Alghabra, an immigrant from Saudi Arabia, was re-elected as Member of Parliament in the 2019 federal election in a Liberal minority government. In 2020, he was appointed Parliament Secretary to the Prime Minister.
Alghabra’s political experience includes:
— Serving as as Parliament Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Consular Affairs) from 2015-2018.
— Alghabra worked on the release of Joshua Boyle and his family by militants affiliated with the Taliban. Boyle was kidnapped in the Ghazni Province of Afghanistan while on a trip through Central and South Asia.
— Alghabra was involved in the release of Salim Alaradi who was detained in the United Arab Emirates for 17 months without being charged.
— Mr. Alghabra assisted in the return of Maryam Mombeini following the death of her husband Seyed-Emami in detainment in Iran. Alghabra has also advocated for release of Dr. Homa Hoodfar in the House of Commons as well as being involved in her case as Parliament Secretary.
Upon election victory for Justin Trudeau in 2015, rumours surfaced that MP Alghabra celebrated his election victory in Mississauga-Erindale by shouting out that “This is a victory for Islam! Islam won!… Islamic power is extending into Canadian politics.”
The incident was reported in a local Mississauga newspaper and picked up abroad by U.S. academic Daniel Pipes, who cautioned about Islamists who support the imposition of sharia law coming close to the levers of power.
Relying on reports from Canada, Pipes later ran updates saying it was unclear who actually uttered the Islamic supremacist statement.
Alghabra has denied ever saying it, and it has been attributed to Khalid Usman, a Liberal party member and Alghabra supporter.
From 2004-2005, Omar Alghabra-– rumoured to be a dual Canadian-Saudi Arabian citizen, was President of the Canadian-Arab Federation.
— In 2007, Alghabra critiqued the Harper government of using security rhetoric to invoke the controversial Anti-Terrorism Act that allowed for preventative arrests and investigative hearings.
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From a Toronto Sun article dated April 26th, 2013:
“When he was president of the Canadian Arab Federation,, Alghabra denounced Canada’s largest newspaper chain for using the term ‘terrorist’ to describe Muslim terrorist groups like the al-Aqsa Martyrs. He said that was a mere opinion, not a fact.”
“Upon the moment when Ontario narrowly rejected adopting Shariah Law for Muslim divorces, Alghabra was disappointed, calling it “unfortunate.”
When arch-terrorist Yasser Arafat died, Alghabra put out a press release announcing he was mourning for him. At a time when government set up a up a no-fly list for passengers considered security threats, Alghabra opposed it.
At the time that Ontario narrowly rejected adopting shariah law for Muslim divorces, Alghabra was disappointed, calling it “unfortunate.”
This is the man Justin Trudeau has now placed into his Liberal Cabinet. Who knew that decades-long religious ethnocentrism could result in advancement to the pinnacle of power within the Canadian government?
Oh, and before CAP forget– Canada is a systemically racist nation.
— Brad Salzberg, CAP Founder(est. 2016).
Careful Brad, you know you’re not allowed to say anything against this type of thing, you’ll be accused of racism and Islamaphobia in Trudeau’s and his cohorts minds for speaking the truth. OH CANADA, where art though?
As if it would be the first time I have been accused of racism! it’s “where art thou” thanks-B