Peter Shokeir | [email protected]
Michael Manchen will represent the People鈥檚 Party of Canada on the ballot in the Yellowhead region during the federal election.
Born in Barrhead and raised in Innisfail, Manchen worked over 25 years in the oil and gas industry and is now a landlord.
鈥淚鈥檝e been a conservative my entire life, and the Conservatives just didn鈥檛 seem to be standing up for Canadian values or conservative values the way that we would have hoped that they would of,鈥� Manchen said.
鈥淲e lost a lot of freedoms and now we鈥檙e into a mandatory vaccine passport, and the People鈥檚 Party of Canada is the only one that opposes that, and we think a person should have the freedom to choose how they live their life and what they do.鈥�
Former MP Maxime Bernier began the People鈥檚 Party after losing the 2017 Conservative leadership race to Andrew Scheer.
The party was on the ballot for the first time in 2019 but won no seats.
Manchen emphasized the need for strong conservative values, balanced budgets as well as freedom and prosperity for every Canadian.
鈥淎bsolutely every single person I talk to in the entire province of Alberta says we need change and we need it now, and the Conservative Party of Canada is not there for us, so this party is our only option,鈥� he said.
鈥淪o, I thought I had to throw my name in the hat to save Canada.鈥�
Manchen said the main issue of the election was the erosion of rights, and he will move to amend Bill C-10, C-16 and M-103, which he says are in direct violation of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms under chapter seven.
鈥淚 was worried about the slippery slope of us going backwards,鈥� he said.
鈥淭his should be a free society, and I was always taught that sticks and stones may break my bones but words should never hurt me, but yet here we are passing bills, and none of our parties are standing up to support Canadian鈥檚 values, so I thought that needed a change.鈥�
Manchen noted how Canada was going back into another lockdown and introducing vaccine passports despite the intense vaccination campaign.
鈥淢y wife is vaccinated and I chose not to, so we have the conversations every day about the freedom of choice and the freedom of expression, and it should be an individual鈥檚 choice on just about every matter.鈥�
He added how if 30 per cent of the population decided not to be vaccinated and the People鈥檚 Party is the only one that opposes vaccine passports, that would guarantee his party 30 per cent of the vote.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to be a voice to be reckoned with here. Maybe the normal media isn鈥檛 recognizing it, but it鈥檚 going to be a big deal, because we鈥檙e getting the word out, and you wouldn鈥檛 believe the support we鈥檙e getting in the Yellowhead region.鈥�
