The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Continued from page 1 Elections Canada will investigate allegations specific Liberal candidates. In the release, Rae called on any Conservative MP, candidate or party official with knowledge of such a vote suppression campaign to come forward and tell the RCMP or Elections Canada what they know. "These MPs, candidates and Conservative Party officials all benefited from an elaborate web of underhanded vote suppression tactics, that included, but didn't stop at, false and misleading phone calls," said Rae. "If they don't come forward with what they know then they are complicit with electoral fraud that, certainly in my mind, is on the scale of ballot-box stuffing. It is hard to believe that in a scheme this widespread and elaborate, there are not a large number of people who would have knowledge of some of the things that took place and who directed it all." Oakville Liberal Candidate Max Khan told The Oakville Beaver this week that he received widespread complaints during the election about residents receiving automated phone calls at 2 a.m. and 3 a.m., calls that told them to vote for Khan. "Obviously you are not going to garner any support waking people up at 2 a.m. Robocalls were not coming out of our office at the time in question," said Khan. "The technology was so advanced with these robocalls, they could actually make our number come up on the constituent's call display even though the call was originating from somewhere else." Terence Young Khan said he ended up having to delay making his own campaign calls as he and his staff were hearing from so many frustrated people who said they received these fake calls at inappropriate times. "I think this past election, and I'm not just talking about in Oakville, was a very sleazy election," said Khan. "Over the past few years, the whole election process has really digressed and it's really unfortunate. This is why people lose confidence in the electoral process, public office and in their politicians." While Khan said the fraudulent calls were widespread in Oakville, he is unsure to what extent they impacted the election, which saw Khan lose to Oakville Conservative MP Terence Young. Khan said the calls frustrated a lot of people and may have helped some undecided voters make up their minds. W h e n reached for comment, Young said he believes anyone caught cheating in an election Max Khan should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. He also said the Liberals were not the only victims of dirty tricks during this election. "Every election in Oakville, the Conservatives have to replace hundreds of stolen or vandalized signs, but we never blame any other party because there is never any proof who vandalized or stole the signs," said Young. "I do not believe for one second that anyone of authority in my party would ever authorize a misleading call." Young pointed out that anyone can make prank calls and any number of people might have a motive to do so, stating the misleading calls could just as easily have been orchestrated by an opponent Khan had during the recent municipal election. Khan said so many calls were being made 5 · Wednesday, February 29, 2012 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.insideHALTON.com there had to be a significant financial backer. Young asked if there was any evidence these misleading and harassing calls even took place in Oakville or if it was just a claim being made by the Liberal Party. The Elections Canada website states the Commissioner of Canada Elections is looking into complaints from the last election surrounding crank calls designed to discourage voting in general, discourage voting for a particular party, or incorrectly advise electors of changed polling locations. The Commissioner, however, does not specify from where the complaints originate. Despite the possibility that his campaign was adversely affected by these misleading automated calls, Khan said he doesn't want another election, but merely to get to the bottom of who is responsible. "I think Elections Canada should be given broader powers to investigate. That might mean letting them look at the financial records of the companies who make these calls to see where the money is coming from," said Khan. "I also think they need stronger sanctions." Young disagreed, stating Elections Canada has all the power it needs to conduct an investigation into election fraud. Hear Your Loved Ones - Our Patients Do! Here's what they have been saying: "People have stopped mumbling!" and "I don't have to ask people to repeat any more!" The Oakville Hearing Centre offers the very best in hearing healthcare. We are proud to provide only the highest quality products and services to our clients. Be sure to enter our February Prize Draw* for your chance to win a FREE pair of premium Widex hearing aids! NICOLE CLARK B.A., M.CI.Sc., Reg. CASLPO A proven professional with the expertise to handle your hearing healthcare needs. save up to $1000 ** 1235 Trafalgar Road Suite 207, Oakville Exclusive anniversary offer on select pairs of hearing aids. Visit www.oakvillehearing.com/savings to www.oakvillehearing.com T: 905.849.5894 *The draw will take place at the end of February. **Receive up to $500 in savings if a single aid is purchased. Offer applies on select hearing aids. Offer expires February 29, 2012.