Saskatoon

Recently appointed Saskatchewan human rights commissioner seeking Sask. Party nomination

Justice Minister Bronwyn Eyre recently appointed seven new members to the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission. One of them, Mubarik Syed, is now hoping to run for the Saskatchewan Party.

Party confirms Mubarik Syed appointed to the commission is same person seeking candidacy

A man stands in a hallway. On a wall behind him, there hangs six portraits of various Muslim men. The man is wearing a charcoal grey suit, a yellow plaid tie, a light blue shirt and a brown hat. A poppy, with a mini Canada flag pin, is on his lapel.
Mubarik Syed was recently appointed as a member of the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission. He's also running for the Saskatchewan Party nomination in Saskatoon Southeast. (Jeff Stapleton/CBC)

The Saskatchewan Party has confirmed that a man recently appointed to the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission is also trying to run for the party in the next provincial election.

Last month, Justice Minister Bronwyn Eyre appointed seven new members to the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission, replacing existing members who had resigned or whose term had ended.

Mubarik Syed, a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat community in Saskatoon, was one of them. In a statement this week, the Saskatchewan Party confirmed that Syed is the same man seeking the nomination for the party in Saskatoon Southeast. 

"Mr. Syed will be abstaining from the board till the completion of the nomination and will be resigning if nominated," wrote Saskatchewan Party executive director Patrick Bundrock.

When the commission appointments were announced, Eyre described the decision to "refresh" the board as "good governance."

Former commissioner Heather Kuttai described the decision as "highly" unusual, saying it's normally very important to have some form of "corporate memory."

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Alexander Quon has been a reporter with CBC Saskatchewan since 2021 and is happy to be back working in his hometown of Regina after half a decade in Atlantic Canada. He has previously worked with the CBC News investigative unit in Nova Scotia and Global News in Halifax. Alexander specializes in municipal political coverage and data-reporting. He can be reached at: [email protected].

With files from Adam Hunter