Northern Ontario Party leader Trevor Holliday is disappointed that the Federation of Northern Ontario Municipalities (FONOM) has invited the three Ontario party leaders to speak at its conference this week in North Bay, yet failed to invite the Northern Ontario Party despite being based in this city.
See: Premier Wynne in town Thursday
"It doesn't surprise me. They keep pulling these antics because we're not part of the big three and FONOM is a major part of this. A lot of the mayors are, or were, card-carrying PC's, so they're all involved.
"We are the hard-working people of the area, so in my opinion, we're striking fear about what could actually happen with the Northern Ontario Party in the next election. We're sending a clear message we're not going away."
Holliday isn't totally sure what his party will do to get noticed during the conference but is planning something.
"I will make some kind of presence during the conference but it will not be with rude gestures, I've never worked that way. But I'm upset that the Northern Ontario Party is not included in that conference when the leader of the party is from here. It's a slap in the face."
FONOM President Al Spacek told BayToday that he's not sure whether the NOP were invited, or if they asked, saying he's not sure what the process is and wondered if the NOP is an officially recognized party.
"Certainly there is no intention to slight anyone. If we had received a request we certainly would have entertained it but I don't recall that we ever got one."
Spacek says he's willing to bring it to the FONOM board if he receives a request from the NOP.
"It's not my decision alone," he said.
Holliday's response?
"How is it we have to request when ALL others were invited?"
In a news release, Holliday says, "There is no true opposition in Northern Ontario to the Northern Ontario Party leader and therefore this conference is a fact-finding mission on the establishment to find more ways to buy votes as they are running out of ideas because they have used them all up with the responses to the announcements the Northern Ontario Party has made.
"We demand an explanation and inclusion into the conference and it made public. Failure to do so will show the ignorance and lack of true inclusion of ALL Northern Ontarians and ALL Northern Ontario parties/politicians."
Take our poll: Should the Northern Ontario Party be invited with the three main parties to speak at the FONOM conference in North Bay this week?
