WINNIPEG — Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister is apologizing for comments he made almost a month ago about Canadian history.
Pallister says he’s asking for forgiveness after saying people who came to Canada, before and after it became a country, did not come to destroy but to build.
Since then, his Indigenous relations minister resigned from cabinet, two Indigenous men quit provincial economic development boards and Indigenous leaders have roundly condemned the premier.
Pallister says he wasn’t trying to praise colonialism and was trying to appeal to people to build the future together.
Some Progressive Conservative caucus members have distanced themselves from Pallister’s remarks.
Pallister, who has previously hinted at retiring before the next provincial election, did not directly answer when asked whether he plans to leave office in the coming months.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 3, 2021.
The Canadian Press
