Pubdate: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 Source: Globe and Mail (Canada) Copyright: 2005, The Globe and Mail Company Contact: http://www.globeandmail.ca/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/168 Author: Rheal Seguin Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/coke.htm (Cocaine) PQ TRIES TO MOVE PAST COKE SCANDAL Members Ask To Focus On Sovereignty, Not Drug Use, At All-Candidates Meeting SHERBROOKE -- Parti Quebecois members in Sherbrooke closed ranks last night, trying to put a lid on the cocaine scandal involving the front-runner in the party's leadership race and turn the public's attention to Quebec sovereignty. "As a party we have to turn the page, we need to have a real debate," said Jacques de Grandmont, 62, who would like to return to old days when the party rallied around PQ founding leader Rene Levesque. During last night's first all-candidates debate, Andre Boisclair orchestrated a show of force to help distance himself from the admission he used cocaine while a minister in the late 1990s. There were no banners, no posters, no placards to identify his supporters; one of the fringe candidates, Jean-Claude St-Andre, succeeded in having all signs of support barred from the room. And the party hierarchy adopted strict rules banning all personal attacks. The debate was often animated but offered little room for a clear confrontation of ideas among the front-runners, Pauline Marois, Richard Legendre and Mr. Boisclair. A good portion of the 1,500 members gave Mr. Boisclair the longest applause and the loudest cheers as a measure of their loyalty to the beleaguered candidate. "Tonight I came to see how people are reacting to this cocaine affair," said Boisclair supporter Philippe Verroneau, 42. "I still think he is the most talented. He came clean and I think people realize that we have to move on." Claire Gregoire, 60, has been a PQ member for 10 years. She said the cocaine revelations only reinforced her resolve to keep supporting Mr. Boisclair. "I don't like mudslinging campaigns. Quebec is a tolerant society and I believe in the adage 'live and let live,' " she said. But for the few undecided voters in the crowd, the cocaine scandal will have a negative effect on Mr. Boisclair and his ability to build support within the party. "What it shows is that he is someone who took certain liberties with his ministerial responsibilities. People expect more from someone like him," said Jean-Alfred Renaud, 59, a long-time PQ member who said he was still undecided. The debate format did not leave room for any major confrontations between Mr. Boisclair and the other eight candidates. He was able to discuss issues such as poverty, education and taxation without having to outline a clear vision of how he would use Quebec sovereignty to achieve his social and economic agenda. Ms. Marois was able to subtly deliver her message that she was the most experienced and credible candidate to lead the PQ to an election victory. If the level of applause was any indication, she appeared to attract a great deal more support than what public opinion has given her in the past. The arguments from such a wide field of candidates were often incoherent and even the theme of the first debate, "public finances and solidarity," became a springboard to defend social democracy and sovereignty. During a news conference after the debate, Mr. Boisclair refused to answer questions about his past cocaine use. He was determined to silence critics by refusing to answer queries that his organizers fear could further derail an already shaken campaign. But talk about Mr. Boisclair and drugs continues to fuel questions about his leadership credentials. Mr. Boisclair's most serious rival, Ms. Marois, spent much of last night underscoring her experience in government. She insisted that party members weren't just choosing a leader -- they were also choosing the person who could win the next election and achieve Quebec independence. "When you choose a president of a company or a CEO, you choose the person with the most experience, and the most qualified. So it is why it is important for me tell that to the party members," Ms. Marois said. The party will conduct a telephone vote between Nov. 13 and Nov. 15 to select the leader. - --- MAP posted-by: Elizabeth Wehrman