PLQ leadership candidate Denis Coderre was angered by the reaction of Liberal elected officials to his record at Montreal City Hall. “If you’re not ridiculous, you’re not worth much,” replied Rep. Marwah Rizqy.
• Also read: PLQ elected officials express discretion over Denis Coderre's record at City Hall
“I don’t have to go to Thetford Mines to talk about the caucus,” the former Montreal mayor said on a community radio station Wednesday.
“A little less laughter in my assessment of Montreal would be nice, because I think we contributed to the rebirth of Montreal. We abolished it after that, but it's not my fault and I think we were able to talk since I got here and my government was able to talk about corruption and all that, we cleaned up,” he continued, in a bitter tone.
Visibly piqued, the former Montreal mayor recalled that Marwah Rizqy, who responded with an open laugh when asked about Mr. Coderre's record as mayor, had lost “two elections” at the federal level – in fact, she came second in Hochelaga in 2015, and second in a Liberal nomination in 2017 – before agreeing she was a good MP.
He then asked “everyone” to show “a little respect.”
Asked for a reaction, MP Marwah Rizqy said: “If you're not ridiculous, you're not worth much.”
She assures that she did not mean to offend Mr. Coderre, whom she describes without laughing as a “big man”.
Mr. Coderre also announced that he would begin a tour of Quebec and invited anyone interested to run for the leadership to avoid “a race by coronation.” In his enthusiasm, he recalled his qualities as an organizer and emphasized that he was once called “Terminator” because he “went everywhere.”