(Ottawa) The cost of living is so high in Canada that people are exiled to countries they once fled, conservative leader Pierre Poilievre was offended – an observation that inspired liberal Pablo Rodriguez to make mocking comments .
The story of a Canadian citizen who says she chose to settle in the Central American country because she was unable to afford a more spacious house in Canada seems to have challenged the leader of the official opposition.
In a video published Tuesday on the X platform which generated hundreds of thousands of views, Pierre Poilievre gives the floor to this woman who claims to have packed her bags for Nicaragua in 2022.
“It’s crazy,” exclaims the leader of the Conservative Party, directing his gaze towards the camera.
“A family from Cape Breton, a fishing family, cannot afford to live here and must move to Nicaragua […] In the past, people were fleeing countries like Nicaragua to come to Canada, but now, people are fleeing Canada to go to Nicaragua,” he continues.
At issue: the government of Justin Trudeau and its policies which have increased the cost of living, argues Pierre Poilievre.
One of the ministers of this government, Pablo Rodriguez, ridiculed this analysis.
“I think he has no idea what Nicaragua is and has never set foot there. It appears,” he joked in the press scrum after the weekly meeting of the Liberal caucus.
“Believe me, I know Nicaragua,” concluded the Minister of Transport.
“It’s ridiculous…” added his colleague François-Philippe Champagne
“Honestly, Canada is the envy of the world. We attract talent. People keep coming. People come here to study. People come to live here,” he continued, accusing Pierre Poilievre of tarnishing Canada’s reputation with “this type of rhetoric.”
Nicaragua has been ruled with an iron fist by President Daniel Ortega since 2007.
His re-election, in 2021, was contested by many countries, including Canada.
Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly had also dismissed the results of the vote out of hand, believing that they did not reflect “the will of the Nicaraguan people”.
The Canadian government is advising travelers to exercise “great caution” in the country, citing the political situation, the risk of civil unrest and crime.