(Drummondville) PQ leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon and former Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe tore to pieces, on Friday evening, any assertion that the sovereignist momentum and its cause belong to the past, the former even saying that he felt “a momentum” and “a comeback”.
“The best is yet to come,” declared Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon in a speech given at the Bloc Québécois convention which is taking place throughout the weekend in Drummondville.
“We are probably before a historic window,” he added, assuring in the same breath that he did not want to rejoice too quickly.
The PQ leader maintained that, a few months earlier, many would have deemed it a “daring gamble” to predict any upsurge in support for the sovereignist cause.
Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon attributed merits to Bloc leader Yves-François Blanchet, mentioning that he has a great capacity to face adversity.
The previous speaker, Mr. Duceppe, maintained that support was only 20% in 1989 before rising within a year. He claimed it is currently at 30%, hinting that it may come back up soon.
PHOTO CATHERINE LEFEBVRE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Former Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe
“You have to be ready at all times,” he told the enthusiastic activists.
The man who led the Bloc Québécois from 1997 to 2011 and in 2015 also attacked those who maintain that political training is useless, such as Minister Mélanie Joly.
MM. Duceppe and St-Pierre Plamondon were warmly applauded upon their arrival in the plenary hall of the convention, as was the former PQ premier of Quebec, Pauline Marois.
His arrival was highlighted by representatives of the Bloc Québécois, like that of the two guests who were to deliver a speech in the evening.
The closeness between the Bloc Québécois and the Parti Québécois could be reflected in the adoption of a proposal that will be put to the vote so that the Bloc Québécois recognize the Parti Québécois as the only political formation in the National Assembly to carry the sovereignist cause.
The resolution also aims for the Bloc Québécois to commit to supporting its sovereignist cousin “until Quebec achieves complete independence”.
This proposal will be debated and voted on in committee, where it could still be modified, before being submitted to all the delegates on Sunday.
Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet will submit to a vote of confidence on Saturday and deliver a speech.