Different perspectives

The resignation this week of backbench Liberal MPP Tony Wong, the only Chinese Canadian in the Ontario Legislature, received scant coverage in the English media. But the news filled the whole front page of Sing Tao, Toronto's Chinese-language daily. Accompanied by a photograph of Wong's empty chair in the Legislature, the lead story in Sing Tao reported that Wong is quitting because he is "dissatisfied with the Chinese community being overlooked."

A sidebar story reported on Wong's demotion last week in a shuffle of parliamentary assistants. Wong, MPP for Markham, had been parliamentary assistant to the minister of research and innovation, who just happens to be Premier Dalton McGuinty. But in the shuffle he was named as a second-tier assistant to Finance Minister Greg Sorbara. (Wayne Arthurs, MPP for Pickering-Ajax-Uxbridge, remains as the first assistant to Sorbara.)

In an interview with the Star, Wong denied that he was miffed over the demotion.

He also denied that McGuinty promised him a cabinet post when he made the deciusion to run for the Legislature in 2003.

"But the premier did say something about naming a Chinese-Canadian member to cabinet," recalled Wong, the only Chinese-Canadian to run for the Liberals in 2003.

For the record, the premier's office flatly denies that any promise of a cabinet post was made to Wong or any other candidate.