Billal Sarwar of South Asian Generation Next had an opportunity to meet and interview the TTC Chair and Ward 18 Councilor Adam Giambrone. Below is the conversation he enjoyed with this ex-mayoral candidate who was amidst a lot of controversy during last months.
An article in the national post has referred to the Scarborough light rail as “second-class public transit” and “ultimately unproductive”. Mayoral Candidate Rocco Rossi has a plan that entails building subway extensions to Scarborough.
Why shouldn’t the suburbs of Toronto have the same standard of public transportation?
Toronto has a good subway network for a population of 1.5 million people; the problem is our actual population is about double that figure. We have to look at the solution that makes the most sense; some areas in Toronto have a high population density, while others don’t. For the most part, you don’t find high density in Scarborough. Subways are designed to carry large volumes of people. You can’t just build subways for rush hour traffic, there needs to be a consistency of a certain amount of passengers through out the day. Light rail is 1/5 the cost of subways and also allows you develop population densities so that in the future (20 or 30 years) there might be a time when these subways would be justified. Well you might say why not build them now? The problem is the city has other needs/priorities, and we don’t have the money to extend deeply into Scarborough.
George Smitherman, Rocco Rossi and Sarah Thomson are no strangers to politics, yet not one of them are a City Councilor.
Do you feel this could negatively affect their performance as Mayor if one of them is elected?
I think it’s going to be a challenge for anybody outside city hall who hasn’t been here before. It’s a different order of government and consequently it also works very differently. Relationships are a good example; it’s not like the provincial or federal government where you have caucus; the Mayor has famously described city council as a government filled with 44 political parties. In general we’ll have to wait and see, the right people can make things work.
The other day I saw a Youtube add that read: Choose Rocco Rossi, “the only candidate who isn’t a political insider”
Why do you think Mr. Rossi’s add wants to insinuate being a “political insider” is something negative?
It’s always been that way, at least for the last 30 years. It’s a pretty common technique, the other one being “it’s time for a change” Barack Obama was obviously a Washington insider; he was a Senator, which is as inside as it gets. However, he still played as an outsider. There is always a constant goal to connect with people on a very direct basis. A Canadian example would be how Premier Dalton McGuinity talks about his kids as a Father, not a Premier, but as a Father.
Do you plan on running for Mayor or any other specific elected positions in the future?
I will in the future. Many politicians such as Jean Creatin have stepped in an out of politics. I’ve got 35 years left and I’ve only been elected for 7. Usually hiccups like these have ended up being blessings in disguise. For example, I initially wanted to be Chair of the Works Committee, but long story short, it didn’t happen. However, that allowed me to become the Vice Chair of the TTC, which led me to become the Chair of the TTC. As for my current situation, I feel I cut short my work abroad as an archaeologist by being elected too early. Now I may have the chance to go back abroad.
An article in the National Post said that you were an advocate of internet voting. Having more Facebook friends than David Miller you’re probably the most popular Toronto politician on Facebook.
With your current online popularity, don’t you think it’s self-serving to promote internet voting?
One point that I stress to my staff is that you have two choices on situations of this nature: you can be a leader and step up to the plate early, or you can be dragged into it kicking and screaming when it becomes a reality three years later. A good example is “open data” which was received with a lot of reluctance. I kept forwarding articles from the Economist and from other governments to tell people that it was coming; you can put it off for 2 or 3 years, but it’s going to come. It’s the same thing with internet voting; it’s coming, Markham already does it. You need to embrace change and work the problems out early on. As a leader you have to see what’s coming, and listen and understand to make wise decisions about the future. It’s not about where you are right now; it’s about where you’re going to be.
Kelly McParland of the National Post referred to your youtube video entitled “I’m ready” as “juvenile” while others said it lacked political content.
[Adam cuts me off again with a hint of annoyance- saying “And other people said it was a brilliant campaign strategy”]
In retrospect, do you think this video was a wise or appropriate choice to kick off your campaign for Mayor?
Think about it this way, in any election for Mayor you’re only going to win with at most a 40% vote. What you’re targeting is forty percent; sixty percent are going to vote against you. The media was actually quite split, half liked it and half didn’t. It went instantly viral and galvanized a certain percentage of the vote. The worst thing you could do is make a very bland video that no one gets excited about. If no one gets excited about the video, it’s not going to spread. It doesn’t matter if 60% of people don’t think it’s a good idea, if 40% do, and go out to vote then that’s where the real success will lie.
In many articles that I’ve read, you’ve been described as very agreeable with Mayor David Miller. Are there any specific issue(s) that you and the Mayor disagree on?
I like the Mayor and I think we share a lot of similar beliefs, which is why we work together really well. But if you want I can give you a specific example where we disagree. The Mayor and Council are currently doing this Bixi bike sharing program; we’re going to begin with 1000 bikes. In order for this to work better, I would have gone with 3000-4000 bikes. You need to suck it up, and you just need to do it. Another example is I would have closed Queen st. for car free day, but the Mayor chose, and he might be right, to apply it to somewhere else. The disagreement on issues is a matter of degree and not fundamental differences. Different individuals have their priorities set in different places.
If you had the opportunity to address all the Youths of Toronto, what would your message be to them?
Take leadership roles especially in your community. You don’t have to wait until you’re a certain age to be qualified. There are lots of opportunities to take an active role, and I say just do it. It could be in politics, it could even be teaching dance moves to young kids; just get involved.
Author:Billal Sarwar
