One of the main spokesmen for the “Freedom Convoy“ says he did not agree with a proposed deal, struck between organizers and the city of Ottawa, that would have seen truckers move their vehicles out of residential areas.
Benjamin Dichter is on the stand Thursday at the Public Order Emergency Commission, the public inquiry that is tasked with investigating the federal government’s use of the Emergencies Act in an effort to end the weeks-long occupation of downtown Ottawa last winter.
He said he came to the capital city in January at the invitation of Tamara Lich, one of the organizers of the “Freedom Convoy,” to be a spokesman for the protesters.
But he was not on the same page as Lich about striking a deal with the city.
On Feb. 12, Lich exchanged letters with then-Mayor Jim Watson, discussing an agreement that would see the truckers move their vehicles away from residential streets.
Dichter said he did not think the negotiations should be happening, because they were partially co-ordinated by Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s former chief of staff.
“These are the sorts of things that were causing so much anxiety and division,” Dichter said.
Dichter said he joined the protests with a goal of ending pandemic-related mandates and spreading a message of “peace, love, freedom and unity.”
But he ended up in conflict with other organizers over messaging.
Two other protest organizers, Lich and James Bauder, are also scheduled to appear before the commission Thursday, which is holding public hearings until Nov. 25.
