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Former Ottawa police chief Peter Sloly speaks after the convoy report

In an exclusive interview, former Ottawa police chief Peter Sloly called for a reassessment of Canada’s national security framework and continued adherence to many of the policy recommendations contained in the Emergencies Act investigative report. newly announced.

“Those recommendations echo recommendations I’ve made myself… We have a national security framework, it’s not as robust as it should be, it doesn’t have the investments it should have. . That was decades ago. And when we come to black swan-type events that literally only happen once in a generation, they’re going to be most fully examined.” Sloly told Ottawa Office Manager Joyce Napier, reacting to the Public Order Emergencies Commission (POEC) findings released Friday.

“And I think structurally, we’ve been found to lack intelligence and national security. I suspect a lot has been done in the last year, I have no doubt that’s where it needs to be addressed. and so it is hoped that these recommendations will be taken seriously and implemented,” Sloly said.

Commissioner Paul Rouleau’s report was highly critical of the planning and early response of the “Liberal Convoy” by local law enforcement, concluding that the protests would not spiral out of control if not due to a series of failures by the Ottawa Police Department (OPS).

However, Rouleau found that it would be “too easy” to just attribute all the shortcomings to Sloly, who said in the interview that he wished he had found a better way to convey the seriousness of the shortcomings. what’s going on in Ottawa within yourself. forces, to the city, and to the millions of Canadians watching the “Liberty Convoy” unfold.

In particular, Rouleau said, Sloly’s claim that there could be no solution to controlling the protests drew “disproportionate scrutiny.” On the other hand, Sloly has sometimes crossed the line and made operational decisions, which were not his role, the report found.


  • Read more about the Commission’s general conclusions and recommendations

The report delves into a range of issues with police response, including failure to gather intelligence and communicate, improper planning, poor communication and lack of coordination, and nearly half of the 56 recommendations focus on control.

Sloly resigned weeks after protests amid heavy criticism that OPS was not doing enough to enforce the law, disperse the occupation and remove truckers from the city, a revelation. has now been included in Rouleau’s findings.

In the POEC witness box for twice as long as any other key player has testified, Sloly faces intense scrutiny over his role in the protests. In his testimony—a week after the Ottawa Police Service Commission appointed his permanent replacement—the former police chief emotionally defended the OPS’s control of the protests.

Here is a transcript of his conversation on Power Game with Joyce Napier of CTV News Channel on Friday, it has been edited for clarity.


Napier: Mr. Sloly, welcome, and thanks for the time… So Justice Rouleau said yes, there were flaws in the controls. We get it, we’ve lived them. You’re a bit like a scapegoat, though, that not all failures to control that policy are your failures. Do you feel vindicated today? Why do you feel that you want to come here and react to this report?


lazy: “Well, first of all, I have committed to myself and my family that I will not speak publicly about any aspect of the reviews… until the commissioner’s report is prepared. And this is my first time doing an interview regarding my participation in the ‘Freedom Convoy’ events.

“The words you’ve used, the words that Justice Rouleau has used quite frankly, the words that coast-to-coast Canadians have passed on to me over the past year. So I’m not surprised it was. included in the report… I know that I did the absolute best job I could.

“Obviously, there are areas that we want to do. And obviously there are areas that, in retrospect, I wish I had the opportunity to do differently.”


Napier: Give me an example of that, an example of what you wish you had done differently?


lazy: “There was a lot of initial communication in the days…after the trucks arrived, that people were trying to figure out exactly what this was. I don’t think we have the words to describe it. However, to this day, we still call it ‘occupation’, ‘protest’, I’ve heard the word ‘revolt’.

“I don’t know if we’ve settled on a single word, and trying to convey that as sheriff in a jurisdiction is clearly overwhelmed by situations that have And I wish I had more precise language to communicate that in my organization, to communicate that to the people, the millions of people who live in the city and the 35 million people. Canada. It’s a challenge.”


Napier: You need help. Who didn’t listen to you at first? I remember you said that you felt like you were abandoned without any help. Who did not listen to you, who did not help you?


lazy: “Thanks. First of all, I don’t remember that statement myself, but there was certainly a sense of pressure and urgency going on within the Ottawa Police Department, in the city of Ottawa.

“I’ve made a statement that there may be no controllable solution to this. And for me, it was first and foremost the statement ‘we’re doing everything we can, but we’re going to need more help. help.’ And I think that’s a call not just to any particular level of government, but to Canadians to understand that this is a national security situation.

“It requires the investment of the whole society in some small or significant way, from a number of actors, whether elected or unelected, whether they are police or justice, or they are just politicians. Thoughtful leaders and caring Canadians.”


Napier: Since when did you think the Emergencies Act would be the tool you needed?


lazy: “Never.”


Napier: Did you ever give it?


lazy: “I’ve never been asked about it. The plans we’re working on are based on…”


Napier: Never had any conversations about that?


lazy: “Not directly with me. And I have been noted about that with the committee and the standing committee [Special Joint Committee on the Declaration of Emergency]. I think the plans that have been made, the ones that we are responsible for in Ottawa, and the ones that follow are part of a larger joint planning group between the RCMP and the OPP that doesn’t have any powers. any other emergency than has been announced. on the last Friday that I was in office, by the provincial government.”


Napier: So there are some recommendations that I find quite confusing. Kind of ‘we don’t have that in Canada’ recommendation yet. One of them is to consider creating a single national intelligence coordinator for major events. If you already have that, or even better, share information and intelligence between all levels of government and police forces… What do you think of those recommendations? Who helped you?


lazy: “Those recommendations echo those that I made again before the standing committee, as well as the committee. We have a national security framework. It’s not as robust as it should be, it doesn’t have the investments it should have had that goes back decades.

“And when we come across black swan-type events that are literally once in a generation, they get the most exhaustive examination. And I think structurally, we’re exposed. there’s currently a lack of intelligence and national security capabilities. It is hoped that these recommendations will be taken seriously and implemented.”


Napier: Are you dealing with a police officer in your ranks who sympathizes with the convoy, with people downtown practically having lived in downtown Ottawa for three weeks? Is that one of your problems?


lazy: “There are millions of people in this country who are very sympathetic to what’s going on.”


Napier: Yes, but I am asking about your police.


lazy: “And I was going to answer. So yes. Yes, there are members of my police force who have expressed deep sympathy for the range of issues related to operations.”


Napier: Is it difficult for you to make them do their job?


lazy: “No, because people can have personal views around many issues and still come to work as nurses, journalists, and policemen and fulfill their duties. Where there is a clear conflict, we initiate it,” he said. , I initiated investigations during my follow-up. And I suspect some of them are still continuing in the trial.”


Napier: You feel compelled to resign. Did you resign because you thought you were becoming, you know, some kind of focal point. Why did you resign before this was resolved?


lazy: “I made it clear in my testimony before Judge Rouleau. And I’ll make it clear again. My resignation is a very complicated matter because anyone of that age and stage can take it. But the number one issue is for me to see clearly from what has been reported on this and many other channels that there is a disproportionate level of concern around my leadership. .

“And that has therefore affected the trust and confidence of the Ottawa Police Department. I believe that has a direct correlation with the amount of resources and the timing of those resources, as well as the public trust and patience for those resources to come.

“I got out of that equation, the resources came in, the planning was done and very well executed. And we were able to safely deal with this without damage. human and there were no serious injuries.”


Napier: I’ll go, probably the route, because a lot of people in Ottawa get annoyed by this. There’s an occupation in downtown Ottawa, there’s a lot of illegal going on. But as soon as you get out of the city center, people get their parking tickets… So, I wonder, they’re doing their job out there. But there seems to be a lot of cooperation going on downtown from your police officers. How that do it, how that play?


lazy: “For me, it wasn’t really complicated. We had a major national security event that mainly took place within a few small square kilometers of the geographically largest city in Canada and the second largest. in North America.

“I had two responsibilities in those two and a half weeks. I’m the sheriff of the city of Ottawa, in a large jurisdiction that still requires police services on a 24-hour basis. And that’s what we do. We also have a 24-hour national security event going on right below these sets.

“And so we have two different theaters going on. And let people try to compare what’s going on in the microcosm of a national security event and the rest of a city. will contain six other major municipalities, I can understand the confusion, but that’s the reality.

“We have a daily policy that plays out everywhere else, and we have a unique national security and policy challenge right here underneath the set.”


Napier: “Unfortunately that’s all we have, but thanks again for coming, for taking the time to talk to us. Former Ottawa police chief Peter Sloly, have a good weekend.


lazy: “Thank you very much.”


With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Michael Woods



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