 Liberal leader Stephane Dion (file)
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MONTREAL -- Federal Liberals from Quebec will move to show Stephane Dion the door if he doesn't give up leadership of the party on his own, Sun Media has learned.
Former Liberal candidate Pierre-Luc Bellerose, who ran for the party in Joliette, northeast of Montreal, said dissatisfied members will begin the process to revoke Dion's party membership if he doesn't quit as Liberal leader.
He said his strategy is supported by a number of influential members of the party, along with a dozen riding association presidents and a few elected MPs from across Quebec.
Bellerose said he is convinced Dion has lost control over the party in Quebec and the organization is no longer following its leader.
The results of the March 17 byelections did nothing to appease discontent with Dion, he added.
"The pressure for him to resign is getting increasingly stronger," Bellerose explained. "The means we see to this end are drastic, but we hope that he'll get the message and leave of his own accord."
Should Dion fail to heed this warning, Bellerose has threatened to invoke Article 3.7.1 of the Quebec wing of the federal Liberal party's statutes and regulations to force him to resign.
The provisions of this article give the Quebec wing the right to strip a party member of his membership.
Dion would become the first Liberal subject to this rule, though Bellerose expects Dion's actual expulsion would be unlikely.
"This is more a question of sending a clear symbolic message," he said.
"Our main objective in putting this whole thing into motion is to unequivocally tell Mr. Dion that the Quebec troops are not backing him up."
On a short layover in Fredericton yesterday, Dion reiterated his trust in his Quebec organization.
He added that the Quebec wing of the party was ready to sway voters should an election be called this spring.
"Instead of being scared of losing, we must showcase our will to win. And we will win, united, in Quebec," Dion proclaimed.
POLITICAL SUICIDE
Yet Bellerose feels that would ultimately lead to political suicide.
"At this point in time, the Liberal Party of Canada can only rely on Ontario and the Maritimes to win over some votes. Membership is plummeting in Quebec, and some ridings wouldn't even have a Liberal candidate to vote for."
Bellerose said Dion would do everyone a favour by quitting the leadership within the next few weeks, which would allow the party to choose a new leader and regain strength over the summer to prepare for a potential fall election.
