Journalists call on Canadian government to stop deportation of Humboldt truck driver

Jaskirat Singh Sidhu, the man responsible for the deaths of 16 individuals as a result of a horrific bus/truck crash in 2018, is seeking to remain in the country despite calls from some Canadians to have him deported.

Former Liberal and Progressive Conservative politicians John Manley and Jamie Baillie though make an impassioned speech for him to remain in the country in their latest column for The National Post.

Sidhu plead guilty immediately and was given 8 years in prison, but was fully paroled in 2023. Personally, I think Sidhu should retain the right to remain in Canada and seek citizenship. He has served his debt to society and is clearly not a risk to others.

The reasoning that Manley and Baillie put forth in Sidhu's defense though is truly reprehensible.

An excerpt from their columbn:

The 2018 crash involving the Humboldt Broncos is one of the most devastating tragedies in recent Canadian history. Sixteen people lost their lives. Families were forever changed. Nothing can diminish this loss, but the fact remains that it was an accident, caused when a truck driver drove through a stop sign at a dangerous intersection. Who among us can say we have never done anything similar? The difference this time is that a small mistake had catastrophic consequences.

Excuse me?

"Who among us can say we have never done anything similar?"

Uh... I can. I can say I've never illegally barreled through a dangerous intersection at high speed.

This was not a "small mistake" as Manley and Baillie put it. This was a giant mistake with catastrophic results.

The casualness with which these two former politicians explain away the deaths of 16 people is appalling and fans online are disgusted. Personally, I don't blame these fans.

What happened in 2018 was a true tragedy. The 16 members of the Humboldt Broncos who lost their lives due to Sidhu's negligence can never be brought back. And whether you agree with the severity of Sidhu's sentence or not, the fact is that he has paid his debt to society in the eyes of the law. He is remorseful and he is no threat to the general public.

Again, I personally feel like Sidhu and his family have the right to remain in the country, but explaining away his criminal negligence as some small 'slip of the mind' is a truly abhorrent position from Manley, Baillie and The National Post.