www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Thursday, October 1, 2015 | 6 Meet your candidates for Oakville North--Burlington Ef e Trianta lopoulos says Oakville North--Burlington needs a strong candidate in the community with the right mix of experience to support the job creation and growth the community needs, so she is running in the federal election as the Conservative Party candidate for the new riding. She says her strong background in the Ef e Trianta lopoulos business, government and not-for-pro t sectors makes her a good t for the OakvilleNorth Burlington MP role. The Oakville resident has held key positions in Ottawa as a Chief of Staff to Ministers responsible for External Affairs and International Trade, Industry Canada and the Treasury Board of Canada. She has also served as deputy director and senior advisor at the Summits Management Of ce of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada for the G20 Summit in 2010. In the private sector, Trianta lopoulos specialized in corporate, international trade and immigration law while working closely with Canadian companies to create jobs, attract investment and nd markets for Canadian products. She served as a director at leading business associations, including Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, Ontario Exports Inc. and the Forum for International Trade Training. see Ef e Trianta lopoulos on p.8 he could no longer stand by as Canada transforms into a place he doesn't recognize. The 35-year-old north Burlington resident said be believes there's a "rhetoric of fear" being used by other parties, especially by the Conservative Party, that he can no longer stomach. Shahbaz Adnan Shahbaz strongly disagrees with Bill C-24, the Strengthening Canadian Citizenship Act, which essentially introduces a two-tier citizenship system, and Bill C-51, the Anti-terrorism Act. "I did a real close reading of that bill (Bill C-51) and that bill strips away many of our fundamental freedoms that are granted to us through the Charter of Rights of Freedom," said the instructional coach with the Peel District School Board. Shahbaz, a married father of one, is running as the Green Party candidate in the Oakville North--Burlington riding for the upcoming federal election Oct. 19. He said he wants to restore Canada to the place that his parents saw when they came in the 1970s. "They came because Canada was that land of hope for them. Slowly I see this environment of fear being created and division being created and I have to stand up against it," said Shahbaz, who graduated from York see Adnan Shahbaz on p.11 ago, her motivation came from a genuine desire to help others. Damoff, who is serving her second term as Ward 2 Town Councillor, said for years she was volunteering in the community to do just that, but wanted to expand her reach to be a voice for others and an advocate for issues most important to residents. Pam Damoff She's hoping to extend that reach even further as she vies for the new Oakville North--Burlington riding MP position in the upcoming federal election on Oct. 19. "I got into politics to help people and I want to continue doing that," said the Liberal Party candidate who has lived in Oakville 23 years. Damoff, who graduated from the University of Western Ontario with a bachelor of arts degree, says her extensive public service, corporate experience and passion for serving the community provides a solid background to represent constituents in Ottawa. She has worked in the nancial and investment banking sector on Bay Street for the last 27 years and is chair of the Oakville Santa Claus Parade and Oakville Terry Fox Run, and a member of the organizing committee of the Courage Polar Bear Dip. She also co-founded Cycle Oakville to promote cycling and improved cycling infrastructure and received the 2013 Bicycling Leadership Award for see Pam Damoff on p.14 Spotlight "Connected to your Community" by Julie Le Oakville Beaver Staff Effie Adnan Shahbaz Pam Damoff David Clement Janice Best Triantafilopoulos Green Liberal Libertarian NDP Adnan Shahbaz never thought he Pam Damoff says when she became David Clement says he's tired of the Most of Janice Best's life has been Conservative would become a politician, but said an Oakville town councillor ve years way politics are playing out in Canada. spent doing advocacy work on behalf The 25-year-old, born and raised in Oakville, said Canadians are being overtaxed, the government is overspending and the charter of rights and privacy rights is being eroded. "I want to offer a different perspective and offer voters a different approach to how politics should be run in Ottawa," said the David Clement White Oaks Secondary School (WOSS) graduate, who is currently an entrepreneur working in the consulting eld and on projects that involve energy security, youth engagement in electoral politics and municipal issues. He said residents shouldn't have to sacri ce the things they want, or feel like they have to "settle by voting for the lesser of three or four evils." Clement is running as the Libertarian Party candidate in the new electoral riding of Oakville North--Burlington in the Oct. 19 federal election. He said he's offering change and a different approach on what the effective role of government can be. He ran in the provincial election over a year ago on a similar platform. Clement, who describes himself as " scally conservative, but socially liberal" noted he would be "a strong independent voice" and could go to Ottawa and "actually represent the ideas of constituents while being scally conservative." see David Clement on p.18 of others. Throughout her career, she has helped solve problems, built links between small business and labour, and even helped others when their job has been on the line. "I view being an MP as an extension of that because the important work that an MP does is on the ground Janice Best with his or her constituents in the constituency," said Best, who is the New Democratic Party (NDP) candidate running in the new riding of Oakville North--Burlington in the upcoming federal election on Oct. 19. "Of course, we spend time in Ottawa and the House of Commons, but that's not the whole job. The bigger part of the job is working with the constituents, helping them solve problems and issues working their way through the red tape and bureaucracy of government to nd solutions to whatever problems they're having, whether it has to do with Canada Pension, employment insurance, immigration," said Best, who has lived in Burlington for 32 years and in the new riding for 21 years. Since 2007, Best has served as the Ontario provincial director of the Canadian Of ce and Professional Employees Union. She is currently on leave to run in the federal election. Her past leadership roles include being the vice president of the Ontario see Janice Best on p.19 Volume 53 | Number 78 5046 Mainway, Unit 2, Burlington (905) 845-3824 Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone (416) 340-1981. 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