PSPP’s refusal to swear allegiance to the king has created a dizzying political-legal whirlwind. If he has sown chaos by defying the legitimacy of the protocol, we must however recognize in him an unfortunately forgotten virtue, that of taking his promises seriously.
Respect
An oath is not just an ordinary formality. Because even if it requires only a few seconds, it solemnly commits the person who pronounces it. You don’t make a promise you can’t keep. To swear fidelity without believing in it is hypocrisy and validates felony. PSPP is the first to show integrity by refusing to use its word in vain. In this regard, he deserves our respect.
But what is valid for the oath to the king should also be valid for the oath to the people. The formula reads as follows: “I declare under oath that I will perform my duties as a Member with honesty and justice in accordance with the Constitution of Québec”.
That a deputy promises to respect the constitution of Quebec is legitimate… provided that the said constitution really exists!
However, Quebec does not have a formal constitution duly approved by the people. (Nor was Canada’s). There is only a plethora of legislative texts in Quebec (Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Charter of the French language, Act respecting the fundamental rights of the people of Quebec, Election Act, etc.) in which some may see vague constitutional principles.
Lèse-majeste
How many deputies are able to state all the legislative texts forming the material constitution? And how many of them actually know what constitutional principles these texts contain?
If they ignore the principles to which they swear allegiance, what is their oath worth? What exactly do they agree to respect? Is there at least one who has already asked the question before giving his word, or are they ready to promise anything to be sworn?
To take an oath to an abstract constitution, that is the real crime of lèse-majesté!