After reflecting since May's election, Burnaby Coun. Sav Dhaliwal has decided to publicly call for B.C. NDP leader Adrian Dix's resignation.
Dhaliwal, former B.C. NDP president, says Dix, president Moe Sihota and provincial secretary Jan O'Brien should step down as the election in May was a huge failure.
"As we all know, the last provincial election was not an ordinary loss for us," he told the NOW. "We're accustomed to losing, but this one was something we were poised to win. We should have won. Instead of a win, we lost really badly."
In the last few months since the election, Dhaliwal said the people he has spoken to about it agree it would be better for the party.
"It left people quite disheartened," he said. "Since then, I've spoken to dozens of NDP members and nonmembers, and most people are fixed on the question of leadership."
Dhaliwal said now's the time to start fresh and prepare for the next election in 2017.
"I have the deepest regard for Adrian, and although you may not believe it today, I respect their contributions to the public over the last decade," he said. "And we are better for it. And I know Adrian very well. He's very smart, very hard-working and has the best for the province on his mind. But the bottom line is the voters of this province ... did not buy the message."
As the Liberal party started off the election as the underdog and the NDP was expected to sweep the seats, Dhaliwal said the leadership failed in inspiring voters.
"Very few, if any, people have said, 'We think Adrian should stay and fight another election,'" he said. "It was a very personal decision for me to go public on this one. I believe it's in the best interest of the party."
A leadership review risks dividing the party unless the leader resigns, Dhaliwal says, and Dix's intent needs to be known.
