Paul Chiang speaks during a news conference on Parliament Hill, in Ottawa, on Oct. 3, 2022.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
Paul Chiang is stepping aside as the Liberal Party candidate in Markham-Unionville after several days of controversy over his comment that people should take a Conservative rival to the local Chinese consulate to collect a bounty.
Mr. Chiang issued a statement on X late Monday, just a few minutes before midnight, announcing his departure from the campaign.
“For the past three-and-a-half years, it has been the greatest honour of my life to serve the people of Markham-Unionville as their Member of Parliament,” he wrote, adding that he served with integrity and is proud of what has been achieved.
“This is a uniquely important election with so much at stake for Canadians. As the Prime Minister and Team Canada work to stand up to President Trump and protect our economy, I do not want there to be distractions in this critical moment. That’s why I’m standing aside as our 2025 candidate in our community of Markham-Unionville.”
Earlier Monday, Liberal Leader Mark Carney said he would not be dropping Mr. Chiang as a candidate, even though he described the comments in question as “deeply offensive.”
The Liberal Leader’s remarks did not tamp down calls for Mr. Chiang’s dismissal over his comment earlier this year about Joe Tay, now the Conservative candidate for Don Valley North.
Mr. Tay and Mr. Chiang spoke late Sunday night, but Mr. Tay had said in a statement that he rejects Mr. Chiang’s apology and he should be removed.
“His threatening public comments were intended to intimidate me, and they must not be tolerated,” Mr. Tay said Monday prior to Mr. Chiang’s resignation announcement.
Mr. Tay was born in Hong Kong but immigrated to Canada as an adult.
In December, Hong Kong police announced a bounty of HK$1-million – about $184,000 – for information leading to his arrest for allegedly violating a national-security law imposed on the former British colony by China. Mr. Tay runs a YouTube channel, HongKongerStation, that draws attention to continuing civil-rights violations in Hong Kong.
In January, Mr. Chiang reportedly told a Chinese-language media conference that people should take Mr. Tay to the People’s Republic of China consulate in Toronto and collect the reward.
“If anyone here can take him to the Chinese Consulate General in Toronto, you can get the million-dollar reward,” Mr. Chiang said, according to Ming Pao, a Chinese-language newspaper.
Separately on Monday, Hong Kong Watch, a group whose patrons include Chris Patten, the last governor of the former British territory, wrote to the RCMP asking the force to investigate whether Mr. Chiang’s comments were a violation of the Foreign Interference and Security of Information Act passed by Parliament last year.