(Québec) Pour répondre au message cinglant envoyé par les électeurs de Jean-Talon lundi soir, François Legault doit au premier chef faire preuve de transparence au sujet du projet de tramway de Québec dont les coûts estimés ont grimpé, soutient Paul St-Pierre Plamondon.
En compagnie de son nouveau député Pascal Paradis, le chef péquiste s’est rendu mardi matin à l’intersection du boulevard Laurier et de l’autoroute Robert-Bourassa, près de Place Sainte-Foy, pour saluer et remercier les électeurs de passage au volant de leur véhicule à l’heure de pointe. « On a cherché un endroit où on rejoint le plus de monde possible. On a trouvé un terre-plein », a-t-il affirmé, rappelant qu’« il n’y a pas de station de métro » à Québec.
Le projet de tramway est d’ailleurs en tête de liste de ses priorités au lendemain de sa victoire décisive dans Jean-Talon, circonscription située au cœur du tracé.
Loin des positions « polarisantes » de Québec solidaire et du Parti conservateur dans ce dossier, « les gens ont encouragé un parti qui a pris une position beaucoup plus nuancée, beaucoup plus prudente », a-t-il soutenu.
En raison de « l’explosion des coûts » dont on ne connaît pas encore la valeur, « est-ce que, du côté du gouvernement, on prépare quelque chose qui n’a pas été mentionné pendant le scrutin et qui ressemble au troisième lien et à ce que moi, j’ai vécu dans l’est de Montréal [avec le REM] ? Ultimately, I think that the City of Quebec must have its structuring transport project, and I will refuse to allow Quebec to bite the dust again.”
According to him, Jean-Talon’s voters “took note of the lack of transparency in the tramway file, of the difficulty in positioning oneself on this file in these circumstances.”
If he is serious in his desire to “reestablish the bond of trust” with the population of Quebec as he declared Monday evening, the Prime Minister must demonstrate transparency, he insisted.
PHOTO JACQUES BOISSINOT, CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
François Legault
François Legault must set the record straight on “the data, the costs and the consequences on the route”. “Because we know that the CAQ has already redesigned the tramway for a small cost overrun,” recalled the PQ leader.
The Prime Minister must “be transparent about what can be disclosed without causing harm to the process”. “At the very least, the government’s intention can be disclosed without harming Quebec City. But the truth is that we got zero information. I haven’t even been able to get an answer as to whether [le gouvernement] wants to move forward or intends to modify the project in light of rising costs. »
The government must put its cards on the table “as quickly as possible”. If he waits until after November 2, the deadline for submitting financial proposals to Quebec City for the infrastructure component of the project, “we continue to waste time. Let’s hope that we have a minimum of transparency from the government now that the election is over,” said Paul St-Pierre Plamondon.
As for knowing what the maximum acceptable bill is for the PQ, “we will wait until the information is transparent and available, and we will come back to you with something intelligent.” There is no question for him of doing “numerology” like Québec solidaire and “throwing numbers in the air”.
By electing a PQ deputy, Jean-Talon voters both wanted to send a message to the government and recognize the good work of the Parti Québécois over the past year, analyzed Paul St-Pierre Plamondon.
“It’s an impetus to continue, an encouragement,” he added. There is still a lot of work ahead of us. »
In his eyes, this is the “consecration” of the rise of the PQ that we have observed since the general elections. “It’s a victory beyond our expectations in terms of support,” he said.
Fourth PQ deputy in the National Assembly, Pascal Paradis considers that “the positive and constructive nature” of his campaign was one of the determining factors in his decisive victory.