LETTER: Canyon move a farce

NEW GLASGOW, N.S. — To the editor,
In January, four people in the Central Nova riding decided to throw their hat into the political ring, each one hoping to represent their constituency as a Conservative MP. 
They were Roger MacKay, Wes Surett, Harvey Anderson and Luke Young. They put up $1,000 each, answered a 50-page questionnaire, contributed an essay, and travelled 1,000 kilometres, criss-crossing the riding to visit voting Conservative members.
Three meetings took place over two days — May 24-25 — to choose the candidate. MacKay was elected to represent the constituency of Central Nova for the Conservative Party of Canada. MacKay’s rivals congratulated him on his success. Three months later, MacKay stepped down for “personal” reasons. Within approximately 26 hours, the national party appointed George Canyon to replace MacKay. 
Considering the negligible time lapse between the withdrawal and the new appointment, it is reasonable to assume that the latter was a predetermined decision. It appears that the national party does not trust the people of Central Nova riding to appropriately determine their candidate for the federal election in October. 
The entire process for the nomination of the Conservative candidate was a farce. This is our democratic process at work. It is shameful.
Clarence H. Felderhof,
Fox Harbour