By Joel van der Veen
MOOSE JAW — Conservative MP Tom Lukiwski is denying reports that he used a slur to describe a local NDP candidate during his victory speech following the federal election a month ago.
Lukiwski issued the denial on Thursday afternoon, following the release of a video clip that showed him speaking to supporters at the Eagles Club hall in Moose Jaw on the night of Oct. 19.
In the clip, after giving his assessment of the election results — in which the Conservatives were reduced to 99 seats and the Liberals received a majority of 184 seats — Lukiwski turned his focus to Greg Lawrence, the Saskatchewan Party MLA for Moose Jaw Wakamow.
He said Lawrence would have a tough battle ahead of him in the provincial election, owing to changes to the riding boundaries, and pledged his support to the campaign.
“He’s too important of an MLA to let go down to an NDP (horde or whore) just because of a bad boundary,” Lukiwski is heard saying in the clip.
Lawrence, the incumbent, is being challenged by New Democratic Party candidate Karen Purdy in the spring provincial election, scheduled for April 4, 2016.
The clip was recorded by Mickey Djuric, a former reporter for the Moose Jaw Times-Herald, who resigned from the daily newspaper last week.
Djuric posted the video online on Thursday, accompanied by a blog entry in which she said she had quit on principle after Times-Herald management decided not to publish a story she had written about the speech.
She alleged that managers blocked the story, saying it was not in the Times-Herald’s best interests to publish it and that they did not want to draw negative attention towards the paper.
“Following their mandate would lead to me compromising my values, ethics and morals as a journalist,” she wrote.
“I humbly and respectfully maintain that the wonderful citizens of Moose Jaw and this riding deserve better — no censorship, no deceit.”
Lukiwski told CBC on Thursday that he had referred to a “horde,” not a “whore,” in his speech, and insinuated that those who believed otherwise were hearing what they wanted to hear.
“If you want to hear ‘whore’ you can hear it,” he said. “If you want to hear ‘horde,’ you’ll hear that.”
He later issued a simple statement on Thursday afternoon, saying he wished to provide clarity on the matter of the video.
“At no point did I use any sort of profanity to describe the NDP,” he was quoted. “I have reached out to the NDP candidate, Ms. Purdy, to assure her that no such insult was ever used nor intended.”
For the full story — along with an editorial statement by the Leader on the incident — please see the Nov. 23 edition of The Davidson Leader.