QUEBEC CITY - A day after Premier Jean Charest pulled out all the grandiose stops to present his Northern Plan legacy project, his political opponents dutifully dismissed the development plan as being overly ambitious and unrealistic.
Charest termed the $80 billion, 25-year plan for Quebec's arctic as "one of the most important sustainable development projects in the world" when he presented it in suburban Levis on Monday.
Charest's adversaries in the National Assembly clearly disagreed Tuesday.
Amir Khadir, the lone MNA from the Québec Solidaire party, described the pomp and circumstance of Charest's announcement as visual "bling" meant to distract from the current climate of distrust in a construction industry that will be looked upon to build $1 billion worth of roads to northern mines and power projects.
"We are facing a vast problem of corruption, of collusion, of over-billing," Khadir said.
Liberal Transport Minister Sam Hamad and Finance Minister Raymond Bachand each dismissed the claim, citing feasibility studies and the transparency of a public tender process.
The party is trying to shake off a public relations problem while painting Charest as a great nation-builder, except the opposition wasn't buying it.
"A lot of people think it's a big joke, calling the guy a ‘Grand Batisseur' (Great Builder) when he didn't achieve anything on that subject," said Action démocratique du Québec Leader Gerard Deltell.
Meanwhile, Parti Québécois Leader Pauline Marois drew her own comparison to a past premier, saying that Maurice Duplessis sold the province's iron ore for one cent per tonne and that Charest will be ripped off by foreign companies in similar fashion.
The comment was especially a propos as a Chinese diplomat was in attendance watching question period, and the Chinese flag flew atop the National Assembly to welcome her.
China is but one of the emerging economies with a strong demand for basic resources like iron who will be looked to for foreign investment, a pivotal factor in the success of Charest's plan.
But, to defend that plan, Charest said he is unafraid to think on a global scale – unlike the PQ.
