Allegation of sexual assault: the conservative Party, launches an investigation

File Photo by Matthew Usherwood
Andrew Scheer

Guillaume St-Pierre

Wednesday, 31 January 2018 16:26

UPDATE
Wednesday, 31 January 2018 16:26

Look at this article

OTTAWA | The leader of the conservatives Andrew Scheer launched an investigation to find out why his party allowed, knowingly, to a former member referred by allegations of sexual assault to seek re-election under his banner.

Mr. Scheer has also promised to make public the result of the examination of “external” and “independent”.

Rick Dykstra was elected under the banner of a conservative for the first time in 2006. He was re-elected in 2008 and 2011.

When he was still a member of parliament in 2014, Mr. Dykstra was suspected of having sexually assaulted a former employee of a conservative.

Even if the party was aware of these allegations, he has allowed Mr. Dykstra to represent in the 2015 elections.

Defeated at the polls, Mr. Dykstra later went to swell the ranks of the Party-progressive conservative party of Ontario. He resigned last week as president of the party when the allegations were leaked to the media.

Andrew Scheer argues that he was not aware that Mr. Dykstra was facing allegations at the time.

“I knew nothing of all this,” said the leader of the conservatives in point of press.

“If the Party was made aware of an allegation of sexual assault today, the person in question would be immediately rejected […] up to the end of an investigation,” assured Mr. Scheer.