Munmohan Singh "Moe" Sihota (born February 18, 1955) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

former broadcaster and politician. He was the first Canadian of South Asian descent to be elected to provincial parliament. He was born in

Duncan, British Columbia Duncan (pop. 5,047 in 2021) is a city on southern Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. It is the smallest city by area (2.07 square kilometres, 0.8 square miles) in Canada. It was incorporated in 1912. Location The city is about 45 kilo ...

and attended St. George's Boys School, Vancouver, on scholarship. He earned a bachelor's degree in social work from the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

in 1977, was awarded a scholarship to Warwick School of Economics, London, 1981 and a law degree from the

University of Victoria The University of Victoria (UVic or Victoria) is a public research university located in the municipalities of Oak Bay and Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. The university traces its roots to Victoria College, the first post-secondary insti ...

in 1982. He was a social worker in White Rock in 1978-9 and a lawyer in

Esquimalt The Township of Esquimalt is a municipality at the southern tip of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. It is bordered to the east by the provincial capital, Victoria, to the south by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, to the west by Esquim ...

in 1984.

Political career

His political career began during his

undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, in the United States, an entry-lev ...

years at the

serving as the

Ombudsman An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...

for the UBC student society, the Alma Mater Society, as well as serving as an elected student representative on the UBC Board of Governors. He became President of the Young New Democrats in 1978 and also served as the President of

Cowichan—Malahat—The Islands Cowichan—Malahat—The Islands was a federal electoral district in British Columbia, Canada, that was represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1979 to 1988. This riding was created in 1976 from parts of Nanaimo—Cowichan—The Isl ...

Federal NDP as well as being the campaign manager for Frank Mitchell and

Jim Manly James Douglas Manly (born 29 October 1932) is a former Canadian politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Cowichan—Malahat—The Islands from 1980 to 1988. A member of the New Democratic Party, he also was a clergyman, facto ...

who were elected to the British Columbia Legislature and the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

respectively. In 1984, Sihota was elected as an

Alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...

for

. In 1986, Sihota ran as the NDP Candidate in the riding of

Esquimalt-Port Renfrew Esquimalt-Port Renfrew was a provincial electoral district in the Canadian province of British Columbia from 1979 to 1986. Its predecessor riding was Esquimalt. Its principal successor-riding, which is the current riding, is Esquimalt-Metchosin. ...

to replace the retiring Frank Mitchell. He held the seat easily and became the first

Indo-Canadian Indian Canadians are Canadians who have ancestry from India. The terms ''Indo-Canadian'' or ''East Indian'' are sometimes used to avoid confusion with the Indigenous Peoples of Canada. Categorically, Indian Canadians comprise a subgroup of ...

to be elected to any federal or provincial riding. In 1991, Sihota ran for and won re-election in the new riding of

Esquimalt-Metchosin Esquimalt-Metchosin is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada. It first existed from 1991 to 2009, when it was succeeded by the electoral district of Esquimalt-Royal Roads. The riding was reco ...

as part of an NDP landslide victory. Subsequently, he was named by Premier

Mike Harcourt Michael Franklin Harcourt, OC (born January 6, 1943) served as the 30th premier of British Columbia from 1991 to 1996, and before that as the 34th mayor of Vancouver, BC's largest city, from 1980 to 1986. Early life and education Harcourt was ...

in his first cabinet, the Minister of Labour and Consumer Services as well as Minister Responsible for Constitutional Affairs, becoming the first Indian-Canadian cabinet minister in a province of Canada. He continued to serve in several cabinet posts under the Harcourt New Democratic government as well as under the subsequent governments of

Glen Clark Glen David Clark (born November 22, 1957) is a Canadian business executive and former politician who served as the 31st premier of British Columbia from 1996 to 1999. Early life and education Clark attended independent Roman Catholic schools, n ...

and Dan Miller, but was forced to resign from

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

several times. During his career, he created 200 new Provincial Parks, extended Workers Compensation Coverage to farmworkers and changed BC logging practices. He also served on the Board of Directors of BC Hydro and Power Authority, Insurance Corporation of BC, Workers Compensation Board and the BC Buildings Corporation.

Controversy

BC Law Society misconduct

Sihota resigned as Minister of Labour in 1995 after the Law Society of BC suspended his licence to practice for 18 months, due to finding him guilty of professional misconduct. He was reinstated to Cabinet in 1996, but resigned again December of the same year due to new allegations of corruption, abuse of office, and

conflict of interest A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation in which a person or organization is involved in multiple interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest could involve working against another. Typically, this relates to situations i ...

. The new allegations were due to actions he performed while in office that benefited his friend and former Vancouver MP Herb Dhaliwal. In his memoirs, "A Measure of Defiance", former BC Premier Mike Harcourt commented that "Although the B.C. Law Society denied the allegation, the hint that the investigation of our outspoken environment minister was politically motivated was too strong to be dismissed that quickly. This was, after all, British Columbia, the heart of nasty, partisan politics. There was no public outcry over the incident and to most of his constituents, reporters and even political adversaries, Moe's credibility did not suffer seriously.

BC Hydro appointment

In 1991 Sihota helped his friend Dhaliwal become appointed to the board of B.C. Hydro in 1991, after Dhaliwal provided Sihota with a substantial mortgage guarantee.''The Canadian Press'', 12 Dec 1996,"Moe Sihota quits cabinet," Toronto The opposition BC Liberals then requested an investigation by Conflict Commissioner Ted Hughes. Hughes later found that Sihota had not been in a conflict of interest. However, Hughes also said at the time of the finding that had the new laws been in place during Dhaliwal's appointment in 1991, Sihota would have been found to be in a conflict of interest.''The Canadian Press,'' 20 Oct 1998, Greg Joyce, "Moe Sihota put back in cabinet," Toronto

Limousine licences

In 1996 Dhaliwal had applied to the Motor Carrier Commission for several licences related to a limousine company partly owned by Dhaliwal and run by Sihota's cousin. It was later revealed by the former Commission chairman that Sihota had made repeated calls and wrote several letters to the commission in relation to Dhaliwal's applications. Sihota again resigned from cabinet in 1996. A new investigation was started not by the Conflict of Interest Commissioner, but by fellow NDP party member and Glen Clark deputy minister Doug McArthur. Although McArthur found that Sihota had "exercised poor judgment and bullied commission staff", he found that Sihota had not been in a conflict of interest. Glen Clark then reappointed Sihota back to cabinet in 1998.

Post Glen Clark era

After retiring from politics following the NDP's defeat in the, 2001 provincial election, Sihota became a television host for The New VI (formerly A-Channel now CTV2) in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

. He left the station in 2004 when his phone-in show, ''VILand Voices,'' was cancelled due to re-organization. He currently provides political commentary for CBC Radio's Early Edition Political Panel. Since 2004, Sihota has pursued several business opportunities and is currently a part-owner and director of the Northern Bear Golf Club (Edmonton, AB), Four Points Sheraton (Victoria, BC) and Walton's Lakefront Resort (Osoyoos, BC). In 2012, Vancouver Magazine named Sihota as one B.C's 50 most influential citizens In 2015, Sihota received the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal for contributions to Canadian Society. In 2005, the Parvasi Awards were created to honour outstanding achievements by Canadian Punjabis. Mr. Sihota was the recipient of the 2015 Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of being the first Indo Canadian elected to a Canadian Legislature and the first Indo Canadian ever to be appointed to a Cabinet. The 100 Year Journey Project chronicles the stories of the first 100 South Asians that impacted Canadian Society, chartered new territories and broke new ground. Mr.Sihota received the 2015 Pioneers and Navigators Award for his work in Politics and Public Policy. After the election of the New Democratic Government in Alberta, Mr.Sihota joined Edmonton's Canadian Strategy Group to provide political and policy advice to Alberta Corporations, Trade Unions and non -profits.

BC NDP president

In November 2009, Sihota was elected to the position of President of the

BC New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party of British Columbia (BC NDP) is a social-democratic provincial political party in British Columbia, Canada. As of 2017, it governs the province. It is the British Columbia provincial arm of the federal New Democrati ...

. In October 2010, the media revealed that Sihota was being paid a salary for his position as President, with payments from The Canadian Union of Public Employees, United Steelworkers, and the BC Federation of Labour . Sihota was elected to a second term at the 2011 party convention. Sihota, along with party leader Adrian Dix, faced criticism for running a poor campaign following the NDP's unexpected defeat in the 2013 provincial election. On September 21, 2013, the day after Dix announced his intention to step down as leader, Sihota announced that he would be stepping down as party president at the end of his term in November 2013. He was credited with modernizing the NDP's fundraising capacity and implementing an outreach to the business community during his term.

Personal life

Sihota currently lives in Victoria, British Columbia and is married with two children, Rajan and Karina. Karina works for the Canadian Labour Congress and Rajan works in digital marketing for rock bands.

References

External links

Moe Sihota
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sihota, Moe 1955 births Living people British Columbia municipal councillors British Columbia New Democratic Party MLAs Canadian campaign managers Canadian political party presidents Canadian politicians of Indian descent Canadian social workers Canadian Sikhs Canadian television hosts Lawyers in British Columbia Members of the Executive Council of British Columbia People from Duncan, British Columbia People from Esquimalt, British Columbia University of British Columbia School of Social Work alumni University of Victoria Faculty of Law alumni 20th-century Canadian politicians