CanWest Party dialogue: live event production at Upperland Studio

Lawrence Chen × Keenan Yang | Highlights Pt. 1: No Election, No One Listens | 2026 BC Election 【0:00 Highlights】 "I said, if you're not going to speak Chinese, I won't open an account here. I'm leaving." Fluent spoken English, an IELTS score of 7 — and he still couldn't stay. 【0:10 Opening & campaign slogan】 Friends from the community, good evening, and welcome to tonight's CanWest Party press conference. I'm your host tonight, Sarah. What's your campaign slogan this time? "When the people call, we answer." In English, "Your voice, our action." 【0:24 No election, no one listens】 And I've seen City Hall improving, taking our concerns into account. Because when you're running, they know you've got voters behind you, so they listen. And the media listen too. At election time, they ask what my platform is, why I'm running. They amplify my voice enormously. Without an election, they'd ignore me. Out on the street, nobody listens to you. Only at election time. Our English wasn't good, and we 【0:45 The bank account story】 skilled immigrants couldn't find work. So we launched a campaign to get jobs for our own people: when spending money, we'd speak only Chinese, not English. Nothing wrong with that, nothing illegal. One example: I went to a bank to open an account. I brought $5,000. When I got to the bank and said I wanted an account, someone came to help me — Taylor, I think. He rattled away in English. I said, "English, no. Can't speak it." I said, "If you're not going to speak Chinese, I won't open an account here. I'm leaving." And not long after, I found that every bank's front counter had Mandarin-speaking staff. Great! Lao Chen gives us a story — and lessons too. Lessons too. 【1:27 Voting rights for permanent residents】 Keenan, I'd also like to ask: just now — our CanWest Party is also pushing a policy, right? That our permanent residents, PR card holders, could one day get the right to vote. Everyone pays taxes into this community and this society, contributes, works here, holds jobs here, starts businesses here. Their contributions are really equal. PR holders may, for various other reasons, not be able to become citizens yet, but just like passport holders, they love this land just as much. We can start pushing from today. Without a first step, nothing comes after. Let's talk about everyday issues, 【2:02 Three years without a family doctor】 like housing affordability, and how hard it is to see a doctor — the long wait times. I went to every clinic in Richmond; not one took new patients. In the end, I went nearly three years without a family doctor. I really want to speak up for family doctors. A few days ago I went to my family doctor and saw on his computer he had 49 patients to see that day. At 15 minutes per patient, his workday runs far past eight hours. I once referred a local 【2:30 IELTS 7 — and still couldn't stay】 graduate, an international student, to our firm. After graduating, he got a 3-year post-grad work permit and worked with us for three years. But in that time, once in the pool, his score never got drawn. Think about it: a local bachelor's degree, three years' experience at a Western company — that's already Great credentials. Excellent credentials. But this gave me a huge shock: someone with a local bachelor's degree, three years of local work experience, fluent spoken English, an IELTS score of 7 — and he still couldn't stay. He still hasn't come back. That's a federal-level issue. Right, immigration policy. Yes, immigration is federal. We need to raise it with federal MPs.

Lawrence Chen × Keenan Yang | Highlights Pt. 2: We Don't Make Big Promises | 2026 BC Election 【0:00 Highlights】 Federal, municipal, provincial — they all make sky-high promises, write blank cheques, and once in office — bye-bye. Things we can't deliver — if we promise them now, we'll only end up slapping our own faces later. 【0:12 No law binds campaign promises】 With the October 24 provincial election approaching, the campaign is in its final countdown. In this country we have elections, but there's no law that binds candidates: if you promise voters something, once in office you must deliver on that promise. If you don't keep your promises, you should step down. There's no such law today. Federal, municipal, provincial — they all make sky-high promises, write blank cheques, and once in office — bye-bye. When we run, we don't talk big. We only say we'll push for things, move them forward, or speak up for you. That's what we can do. As for what we can't, I'm just not one for that kind of big talk. Many people ask us, why don't you have 【0:54 We don't make big promises】 a platform with real highlights? Why can't you make a commitment to us voters? Well, it's just as Mr. Chen said: things we can't deliver — if we promise them now, we'll only end up slapping our own faces later. To be honest, even if both of us win this year, out of 93 seats, we'd hold just two. We won't be the governing party, or the majority. 【1:16 Does voting make a difference?】 About Chinese voters who don't vote, thinking it makes no difference to us — whoever wins, it's all the same. Now it's different! Vote for us and it's different. Vote for us, because we've made a commitment: on most issues, we listen to voters first. Only after hearing what most people say do we take it up the chain. 【1:33 Party or person? Switching parties】 So tell us: when voters cast their ballots, are they choosing the party or the person? The party. But what if there's a great candidate who lost just because he picked the wrong party? Next time, join that party and run for it. We're the people's representatives; we represent the will of the people, right? You represent these people. Jump to the other side, and you don't represent them anymore. That is a huge disrespect to voters. Legally it's allowed, but the public would tear into you. You'd be finished. That's called a traitor. Legal, but not right. 【2:06 Zero tolerance on drugs】 First of all, I personally, and our party, have zero tolerance for drugs. What really decides — as you said — whether cannabis comes into a community is city council, those nine people. Those nine decide whether cannabis can come in. The federal and provincial governments have both given the green light, and told the city: whether to say yes is now entirely up to you. If city council discusses it and says no, then it's no. So in that case, if you want to keep cannabis out of the city completely, those councillors... are the last line of defence. Right — the most crucial line of defence. 【2:41 Searching for candidates】 Out on the road, I've become almost neurotic. Every meal: "Are you a citizen?" Last time I taught a class, forty people — only one citizen. I said, how can this be? Strange — thirty-nine were all PRs. Lao Chen, is it easier to win in remote areas? It cuts both ways. Easier because very few people sign up. Some places have just two. Sometimes just one signs up and wins by acclamation. I tell you, I've been to several ridings. I said, "Sign up now — this seat is still open." They wouldn't listen. That's like selling winter boots in the rainforest! If you're not happy with the current governing party or any of the big parties, I hope you'll give us a chance to get to know the CanWest Party.