The Curious Case of Ruby Dhalla

I know a bit about nannies. I employed three of them while my kids were very young. Two were Phillipinos. All three were really quite nice and were treated very well. The nanny suite comprised a separate entry, a large bedroom, a sittingroom with stereo and TV and a private bathroom.

I got to meet quite a few Phillipino nannies. It turned out most of them didn't have the sort of suite we provided so they tended to congregate at our place on weekends to socialize. From time to time one of our nannies' friends would have a minor legal problem that I would attend to, giving me a broader insight into their lives.

Most of the Phillipino nannies I met came to Canada indirectly after serving a stint in Singapore or Hong Kong. From their stories it was pretty clear that Canadian employment conditions were a definite cut above what they'd experienced previously. That said there were enough problems for them here in Canada.

What I find particularly curious about Ms. Dhall's situation is that three Phillipino nannies would come forward with allegations against her. Those I've known were very sensitive about authority. Power and authority made them deeply apprehensive. Ms. Dahl is powerful. She has money. They know that. They also know she has some political standing. Remember that Canada is, for them, a foreign country, an unfamiliar place where most hope for nothing more than landed immigrant status. They understand there are many ways to jeopardize that chance and that making waves is one of them.

Nannies are not the sort inclined to make waves, just the opposite. Then what could they possibly hope to gain from exposing themselves in this way? They're not going to get any money out of it. There must be something sufficiently valuable and certain to make them come forward, especially to make all three come forward at the same time.

Jason Kenney says he's not behind this but his assurances are hardly convincing. I think someone is behind this and, as I mentioned, immigration is almost certainly a priority for these women.

These nannies are taking a huge risk. If their complaints are contrived, any skilled trial lawyer should be able to expose them without breaking a sweat. The best liars are the professionals and anyone who's had much experience taking the best down would have a field day with rank amateurs like these three.

There's too much at stake here to leave this to Ms. Dhalla. Michael Ignatieff should, on behalf of the LPC, be hiring his own top guns on this one. If what these women are saying is true and the Tories aren't behind this, that will be apparent soon enough and Ms. Dhalla should go before she can do further harm to the party. However, if this is a set up, that will also be apparent soon enough and then the question will be who lies behind it all? If these women are not telling the truth, there is definitely someone driving this.