NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is calling for the House of Commons to hold an emergency debate on the ongoing trucker convoy standoff in downtown Ottawa.
In a letter to House of Commons Speaker Anthony Rota, Singh said later today he will be seeking approval for the special debate, which couxjmtzywld happen as early as Monday evening.
After a second weekend of protests and an uptick in tickets and arrests, the city of Ottawa declared a state of emergency on Sunday.
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As of Monday morning, trucks continue to clog streets throughout the city and organizers are showing no signs of packing up, despite police seizing fuel from a protest staging area in a parking lot of a baseball stadium five kilometres east of downtown.
“The situation has reached a crisis point. And in times of crisis, it is important for federal leaders to show leadership, to urge de-escalation, and to work together to find solutions,” Singh wrote in his letter, adding that an emergency debate would give parliamentarians the ability to “address the critical situation.”
Continuing to describe the city as under “siege,” Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson revived his pressure on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to step in, something both he and Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloly have suggested will be needed to see an end to the demonstrations now into their second week.
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Watson told Ottawa’s CTV Morning Live that he wants the prime minister to appoint a mediator in an effort to end the “Freedom Convoy” occupation in the city’s downtown.
The mayor indicated he’s suggested to federal cabinet ministers that a mediator could be "an honest broker on both sides to try to find some common ground, if that’s possible."
"Someone of great stature in our community and the country who can actually open doors and bring some peace and calm to the situation," Watson said. "That’s one option that I think the federal government should pursue, because right now we’re at a complete standoff."
And here’s the scene on Parliament Hill, on the eleventh day of this section of Wellington becoming home to #FreedomConvoy2022 truckers and their supporters. #ottcity pic.twitter.com/RG5lySocyY
— Rachel Aiello (@rachaiello) February 7, 2022
RELATED IMAGESview larger image
A trucker drinks a coffee as a rally against COVID-19 restrictions, which began as a cross-country convoy protesting a federal vaccine mandate for truckers, continues in Ottawa, on Friday, February 4, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/ Patrick Doyle
