MacKay calls Liberal's trip to Afghanistan a stunt
Coderre says he is doing his job as defence critic
Last Updated: Friday, October 5, 2007 | 7:52 PM ET
CBC News
It is irresponsible for the Liberal defence critic to travel to Afghanistan without the Conservative government's approval, Defence Minister Peter MacKay said Friday.
The critic, Denis Coderre, said he is going on his own because he is tired of waiting for permission.Liberal defence critic Denis Coderre would not say where he was on Friday, but he said he was headed for Kandahar.
(CBC)
Reached by phone on Friday, he wouldn't reveal his whereabouts except to say he is closer to his goal, Kandahar, the command centre for most of the 2,500 Canadian troops in Afghanistan.
"I'm the official critic. I'm the critic of the Official Opposition of Her Majesty. It's important for me to do my job," he told CBC News.
Coderre said he will meet with aid groups and hopes to speak to Canadian military officers.
Paving the way for a visit by Stéphane Dion
Another reason he is going, he said, is to lay the groundwork for an eventual visit by Liberal Leader Stéphane Dion.
"We're hoping for this fall," Coderre said, "and after my trip, I'm going to make him a full briefing, to him and our caucus."
The trip isn't winning Coderre friends on the government side of the House. MacKay said he should have stayed home.
"Mr. Coderre is engaged, in my view, in a dangerous and elaborate stunt, a publicity stunt on his part," MacKay said, arguing that troops in Afghanistan could be put in unnecessary danger if Coderre were kidnapped and they had to try to save him.
"It's irresponsible. It puts people at risk. It puts soldiers at risk."
Coderre said he wouldn't have to travel on his own if the government made it easier for MPs like him to visit Afghanistan.
