Liberal MP Arnold Chan dies after battle with cancer
Arnold Chan, the Liberal MP for Scarborough-Agincourt, has died at the age of 50. Chan had battled cancer over the last two years.
“I am saddened by the untimely passing of my husband,” Chan’s wife, Jean Yip, said in a statement. “He was a loving father, wonderful husband and dedicated public servant.
“He proudly served as a Member of Parliament for Scarborough-Agincourt for the past three and a half years, and while he courageously fought his nasopharyngeal cancer he always continued to work hard for his constituents.”
Liberal MPs in Ottawa for committee hearings confirmed Chan’s death to their colleagues on Thursday morning.
“Arnold never stopped,” said Bill Casey, chair of the health committee. “He worked right to the last minute. He never slowed down, he was always present and he put up a good fight.”
“He loved this place, he lived this place,” Liberal MP David Graham told members of the transport committee before a moment of silence. “On behalf of all of us here, I want to send my best to Jean and their three sons.”
MP remembers Arnold Chan1:32
Chan was first elected federally in a by-election in 2014, then re-elected in 2015. Previous to that he was an aide in the Ontario Liberal government. At Queen’s Park, Ontario MPPs held a moment of silence in Chan’s honour.
Colleagues from all parties paid tribute to Chan as the news circulated.
“Arnold Chan made us all better as Parliamentarians. I will miss my friend seatmate, who was taken far too soon,” tweeted Liberal MP Chris Bittle.
“Saddened at passing of MP Arnold Chan, champion of civility and reason,” tweeted Conservative MP Peter Kent.
“Our caucus, Parliament, and country will all miss Arnold Chan,” added Liberal MP Nate Erskine-Smith.
And Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted “Today, our Parliamentary family mourns the loss of one of our own. Arnold, you were an inspiration to us all. Rest in peace my friend.”
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau and MP Dominic LeBlanc, right, escort Arnold Chan into the House of Commons in September, 2014, following his byelection victory. Chan was re-elected in the 2015 election. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)
Chan’s poignant last speech
In June, with his wife and parents in attendance, Chan rose in the House of Commons to deliver an emotional and personal address, thanking his family for their support and encouraging his fellow MPs to honour the institution of Parliament.
“I am not sure how many more times I will have the strength to get up and do a 20-minute speech in this place, but the point I want to impart to all of us is that I know we are all honourable members, I know members revere this place, and I would beg us to not only act as honourable members but to treat this institution honourably,” he said.
“I would ask all of us to elevate our debate, to elevate our practice.”
Arnold Chan’s heartfelt speech to the Commons2:22
Chan encouraged his colleagues to drop their “talking points” and listen to each other.
“That is the challenge that is going on around the world right now,” he said. “No one is listening. Everyone is just talking at once. We have to listen to each other.”
He also asked Canadians to value their democracy.
“I would ask Canadians to give heart to their democracy; that they treasure it, revere it,” Chan said.
“Of course, I would ask them in the most basic of things, to cast their ballot, but for me it is much more than that. I ask them for their civic engagement, regardless of what it actually may mean, whether it is going out and coaching a soccer team, whether it is helping someone at a food bank,” he said.
“And for me it can be even something simpler than that … It is thanking our Tim Hortons server. It is giving way to someone on the road. It is saying thanks.
“It is the small things that we collectively do, from my perspective, that make a great society, and fundamentally to me that is ultimately what it means to be a Canadian.”
Article source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/arnold-chan-death-1.4289409?cmp=rss