Manitoba PC leadership candidate asked to apologize for sharing post stating Muslim rival must be stopped

A national Muslim advocacy organization says it's "deeply alarmed" a candidate to lead Manitoba's Progressive Conservative Party shared a Facebook entry that declared his Muslim rival must be prevented from winning the race.

The National Council of Canadian Muslims has asked PC leadership candidate Wally Daudrich to apologize after his campaign shared a Facebook post that ended with the statement "We must stop Muslim Obby Khan from becoming Conservative leader."  

Daudrich, who owns a hotel and ecotourism company in the Hudson Bay town of Churchill, Man., and Khan, the Progressive Conservative MLA for the Winnipeg constituency of Fort Whyte, are the only two candidates in Manitoba's PC leadership race.

The PCs, who form the official opposition to Manitoba's NDP government, plan to announce the winner of this race at a party convention slated for April 26. 

On Dec. 30, a Facebook user called Vicki Poutine reposted a campaign letter Daudrich sent to his supporters and added the tag about Khan at the end of the post.

Daudrich's campaign shared Poutine's post on Jan. 9 and deleted it on Jan. 13, said Daudrich campaign spokesperson Mike Patton. The deletion occurred as soon as the campaign was made aware of the tag at the end, he said.

In a statement issued the following day, the National Council of Canadian Muslims said targeting Khan on the basis of his faith is "a clear example of Islamophobia" and stated it has no place in Canadian politics.

"As Canadians prepare to mark Jan. 29 — a day of mourning for the six worshippers lost to terrorism at the Quebec City mosque attack — we are reminded of the devastating consequences of Islamophobia," CEO Stephen Brown said in a statement. "It is crucial for political leaders to unite Canadians, not divide them."

The council called on Daudrich to apologize publicly to Khan and Manitoban Muslims "for amplifying this harmful rhetoric." The organization also asked the Manitoba PCs and the party's leadership election committee to condemn Daudrich's behavior and take action to ensure "such incidents are not tolerated within the party."

Joseph Ben-Ami, Daudrich's campaign manager, called the controversy nonsense.

"The reference to Mr. Khan's Muslim faith was made at the end of a long post written by an individual not associated with our campaign," Ben-Ami said in a statement. 

"It was reposted by one of our staff who did not notice it. As soon as it was brought to our attention it was immediately removed. This was an honest mistake to which our campaign responded quickly and appropriately."

Sadaf Ahmed, a Manitoba advocacy officer for the National Council of Canadian Muslims, said she did not accept this explanation.

"As a provincial leadership candidate, it's incumbent upon any individual to ensure that they have carefully scrutinized anything that they are choosing to repost," she said in an interview.

Manitoba PC president Brent Pooles said in a statement his party denounces "any public comments or posts on social media that target our members or any Manitoban based on their race or religion." 

Brad Zander, who chairs the party's leadership election committee, said the party expects its leadership candidates to uphold the principle the PCs are open to all Manitobans, regardless of their religion.

"In light of Mr. Daudrich's shared Facebook post, the LEC asks that Mr. Daudrich confirm his commitment to this principle," Zander said in a statement.

Zander did not say specifically what this confirmation would entail.

In a statement of his own, Khan said he was "hurt and disappointed" by the shared post and asked Daudrich to "disavow the content [in] the post he shared while also taking responsibility for sharing it."

Manitoba's Progressive Conservative Party launched its leadership race in 2024 after former leader Heather Stefanson resigned. Wayne Ewasko, who represents the southeastern Manitoba constituency of Lac du Bonnet, serves as interim leader.

The PCs currently hold 21 seats in the 57-seat Manitoba Legislature.