Gulzar Singh Cheema (born August 11, 1954) is an Indian-born Canadian physician and politician.
Cheema was a member of the
Legislative Assembly of Manitoba
The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba (french: Assemblée législative du Manitoba) is the deliberative assembly of the Manitoba Legislature in the Canadian province of Manitoba. Fifty-seven members are elected to this assembly at provincial gener ...
from 1988 to 1993,
and a member of the
Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is the deliberative assembly of the Parliament of British Columbia, in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The Legislative Assembly meets in Victoria, British Columbia, Victoria. Members ar ...
from 2001 to 2004,
[ making him one of only a few Canadian politicians to sit in two provincial legislatures since ]Confederation
A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
. He is the first Indian-born person to be elected MLA in Canada. He was also a cabinet minister
A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ‘prime minister’, â ...
in the government of Premier of British Columbia
Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier.
A premier will normally be a head of governm ...
Gordon Campbell
Gordon Muir Campbell, (born January 12, 1948) is a retired Canadian diplomat and politician who was the 35th mayor of Vancouver from 1986 to 1993 and the 34th premier of British Columbia from 2001 to 2011.
He was the leader of the British Co ...
from 2001 to 2004, and was a candidate of the Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada (french: Parti libéral du Canada, region=CA) is a federal political party in Canada. The party espouses the principles of liberalism,McCall, Christina; Stephen Clarkson"Liberal Party". ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' ...
in the federal election of 2004.
Education
The son of Ajinder Singh Cheema and Ajit Kaur Aulakh.[ he was born in village-Benagarh ]Jammu district
Jammu district is the most populous of the districts in Jammu and Kashmir, India and is home to the winter capital (Jammu) of Jammu and Kashmir. The capital moves to Srinagar in the summer.
Administrative divisions
Jammu District has 7 Sub ...
in the ammu and kashmirof India and received a bachelor's degree in medicine and surgery from Punjab University in 1977. In 1979, he married Harinder Claire daughter of Inderjit singh Claire and Baljit Claire and moved to Canada. He interned at Memorial University of Newfoundland
Memorial University of Newfoundland, also known as Memorial University or MUN (), is a public university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook, elsewhere in Newfoundland and ...
and was a resident at Saskatoon
Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...
's University Hospital
A university hospital is an institution which combines the services of a hospital with the education of medical students and with medical research. These hospitals are typically affiliated with a medical school or university. The following is a l ...
. He was a family physician in Winnipeg
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...
from 1984 to 1993.[ In 1992, he was awarded the Canada 125 Medal for community service. To promote the health and welfare of the community, Cheema participates weekly on local multicultural radio talk shows and M Channel, a local multicultural television channel.
Cheema is practicing family medicine and is a clinical assistant professor for the Department of Family Practice at UBC as well as the medical director for iCON South Asian Division eHealth Strategy Office Faculty of Medicine, UBC. He lives in ]Surrey, British Columbia
Surrey is a city in British Columbia, Canada. It is located south of the Fraser River on the Canada–United States border. It is a member municipality of the Metro Vancouver regional district and metropolitan area. Mainly a suburban city, Surr ...
, with his wife and children.
Manitoba politics
In the Manitoba general election of 1988, Cheema was elected as a Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
in the northeastern Winnipeg riding of Kildonan. The Liberals went from one to twenty seats in the Manitoba legislature in this election, winning several Winnipeg seats from the governing New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic:
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(NDP). Cheema defeated Progressive Conservative candidate John Baluta by 585 votes, with NDP incumbent Marty Dolin finishing third. The Progressive Conservatives came out of the election with a minority government, and Cheema became a member of the official opposition. Cheema increased his margin of victory in the 1990 provincial election when he ran in the new riding of The Maples, but the Liberal Party fell to seven seats and third-party status. During his time in the Manitoba assembly, he served as critic for health, labour, housing, native affairs, sport and co-operatives, and consumer and corporate affairs.[ He resigned his seat on June 17, 1993.][
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BC politics
Soon afterwards, he opened a family practice in Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
, British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
.[ Cheema became involved in several community activities in British Columbia, including acting as chair of the 1998 British Columbia Games for Athletes with Disabilities' medical section.
Although the ]British Columbia Liberal Party
The British Columbia Liberal Party, often shortened to the BC Liberals, is a Centre-right politics, centre-right provincial political party in British Columbia, Canada. The party currently forms the Official Opposition. Subsequent to the 2020 Br ...
is usually regarded as significantly more right-wing than the Manitoba party, Cheema nevertheless ran as a BC Liberal in that province's 1996 provincial election. He was unsuccessful, finishing 380 votes behind New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic:
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candidate Ian Waddell
Ian Gardiner Waddell (November 21, 1942March 15, 2021) was a Canadian politician, author and filmmaker. He served in the House of Commons of Canada from 1979 to 1993, and in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 1996 to 2001.
Ea ...
in Vancouver-Fraserview
Vancouver-Fraserview is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada.
Geography
Following the redistricting in 2015 based on the previous census, Vancouver-Fraserview sits in the southeastern po ...
.
The BC New Democrats experienced a sharp decline in their popularity between 1996 and 2001, and the provincial Liberals were elected in a landslide in that year's provincial election. Cheema had no difficulty being elected in Surrey-Panorama Ridge
Surrey-Panorama Ridge was a provinces and territories of Canada, provincial electoral district (Canada), electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada from 2001 to 2009.
Demographics
Geography
1999 Redistribut ...
, defeating NDP candidate Bruce Ralston
Bruce Ralston is a Canadian politician. He is a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) of British Columbia, representing the riding of Surrey-Whalley since 2005, and member of the New Democratic Party (NDP). He has served in the cabinets of Pre ...
by over 6,000 votes. On June 5, 2001, he was appointed Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In o ...
for Mental Health Services. On January 20, 2004, he was appointed Minister of State for Immigration and Multicultural Services.[
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Federal politics
Later in 2004, Cheema sought and won the federal Liberal nomination in the new riding of Fleetwood—Port Kells
Fleetwood—Port Kells is a federal electoral district in the province of British Columbia, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 2004.
Geography
It consists of the northeast part of the City of Surrey, ...
. He was removed from cabinet hours after submitting his nomination papers, and subsequently resigned as a provincial Member of the Legislative Assembly
A member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to a legislative assembly. Most often, the term refers to a subnational assembly such as that of a state, province, or territory of a country. S ...
(Canadian politicians seeking federal office are usually required to step down from their provincial responsibilities.) In a relatively close three-way race, Cheema was defeated by Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
candidate Nina Grewal
Nina Grewal (born 20 October 1958), is a Canadian politician of the Conservative Party of Canada, Conservative Party. She represented the constituency of Fleetwood—Port Kells, British Columbia from her election in the 2004 Canadian federal el ...
, 14,052 votes to 11,568 (New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic:
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candidate Barry Bell
Barry Bell (born June 22, 1951) is an American film, television, stage and voice actor. He is best known for portraying Steve Gayton from Stephen King's 1986 film ''Maximum Overdrive'', Barnett Gibons from '' This World, Then the Fireworks'' 19 ...
received 10,976 votes).
Election results
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheema, Gulzar Singh
1954 births
Living people
Canadian general practitioners
British Columbia Liberal Party MLAs
Canadian politicians of Indian descent
Canadian Sikhs
Indian emigrants to Canada
Indian Sikhs
Candidates in the 2004 Canadian federal election
Manitoba Liberal Party MLAs
Members of the Executive Council of British Columbia
Memorial University of Newfoundland alumni
People from Surrey, British Columbia
Punjabi people
University of British Columbia faculty
Liberal Party of Canada candidates for the Canadian House of Commons
21st-century Canadian politicians
21st-century Canadian physicians