John Bolton - January 09, 2026


Got Questions About Independence? - We have answers (Sign the Petition)


Episode Stats

Length

11 minutes

Words per Minute

187.9679

Word Count

2,084

Sentence Count

159


Summary

Jeevan Mangat is one of the organizers of the Stay Free Alberta event on Saturday, January 10th at the Queensland Community Centre in Southeast Calgary. He is also a friend of mine and has been a long time supporter of the independence movement in Alberta.


Transcript

00:00:00.000 Hi, it's John and welcome to the channel. It is Friday, January the 9th. I hope you're
00:00:08.460 having a great start to your Friday morning. I surely am here with the big blue mug of
00:00:12.460 coffee, of course. Thank you so much for being part of this video and with my guest here
00:00:17.780 today. Really excited about this one because we've got an event coming up tomorrow night
00:00:21.860 at 7 o'clock at the Queensland Community Center in Southeast Calgary that's going to be really
00:00:26.640 exciting and I think a little bit different. I'd like to welcome Jeevan Mangat who is one of the
00:00:30.400 organizers of the event, an independence-minded Albertan as well and a friend of mine as well.
00:00:35.360 Jeevan, great to have you here. Thanks for spending some time. Well, thank you, John. It's wonderful to
00:00:40.600 meet you again and wonderful to be on your show. Well, you know, I want to just, I want to go back.
00:00:46.920 I don't want to spend a lot of time here, but I contacted you to talk to you about the independence
00:00:51.800 movement way back in the spring. You asked me to emcee an event on May 3rd at the Alberta legislature
00:00:57.320 and it was a really terrific event, really the first independence rally at the legislature
00:01:02.760 after the April 28th election. It was a great day then and things have really moved along,
00:01:07.740 haven't they, since that date? Yes, at the speed of light, but, you know,
00:01:12.580 here we are a few months later from May the 3rd and we are already have a petition where, you know,
00:01:23.860 Stay Free Alberta has canvassers and it's a huge organization. But remember, all of these people are
00:01:31.900 volunteers. Like there's thousands of people volunteering for the independence of Alberta.
00:01:37.600 And what does that say? Well, it says a lot. And, you know, I had Mitch Sylvester on with me the other
00:01:42.060 day and I said to Mitch, you said something at the October 25th rally at the Alberta legislature that
00:01:49.560 you really needed some people's time. If everybody puts some time into this, then we can win this
00:01:54.980 thing. You know, I was thinking about this today, Jeevan. This will probably be the only time in my
00:02:00.880 lifetime that this will happen. These opportunities don't come around very often because if you look
00:02:05.700 the last time that there was a referendum on independence or separation was in Quebec and that was
00:02:11.480 30 years ago. So, you know, I'll be 91 years old if it's 30 years before Alberta has another one of
00:02:17.020 these referendums. So we need to act now. And if everybody volunteers some time, we can get this
00:02:22.560 thing done, right? Yes. And John, you're so right that this is the one. And I've been saying the same
00:02:29.620 words. This is once in a lifetime opportunity. And if we don't act now, we are going to leave a
00:02:37.140 province for our children and grandchildren in a disarray. And I am of the opinion, and I always state this,
00:02:45.020 I said, don't forget the settlers, the pioneers, the veterans who came here, you know, 120 years ago and
00:02:54.700 there was nothing. And look, the province that they had built, that's who I'm working for. Those are the people I
00:03:02.060 wish to remember and continue their legacy. Yeah. So we've got an event coming up on Saturday night,
00:03:07.900 which I think is unlike the other ones that you might see around the province with Stay Free Alberta.
00:03:14.440 There are great events as well. You contacted me back in December saying, I want to do an event on
00:03:19.060 January the 10th. And initially, I think it was going to be us maybe inviting some people out to answer
00:03:23.740 some questions and whatnot. But this has really taken on a life of its own. We've got some great guests
00:03:28.340 coming up on Saturday night at the Queensland Community Center here at seven o'clock and tell
00:03:32.840 us a little bit about it. Yes. So this event, Heather Field, sorry, Heather Field is the organizer.
00:03:43.180 She's actually the main organizer. We're both working together to have this event. And it was her idea
00:03:48.940 that we should do a chapter event, that we should have the few Southeast writings. Maybe we can combine
00:03:56.680 and hold an event. And so I agreed. And then I said, well, I'm going to phone a few people. So
00:04:03.560 I phoned Corey Morgan, yourself, Eva Chipiak, and also Heather phoned in Dennis Kalma. I mean,
00:04:13.720 Dennis is an icon because he's co-author of The Value of Freedom. Here it is right here. Yes.
00:04:21.320 You know, I've got the same copy. So it's, and I can't believe the amount of work that went to it,
00:04:28.400 into it. But don't forget, Dennis, again, is a volunteer who put this document together.
00:04:35.480 Look at the hours, the data collection. It's incredible.
00:04:39.540 I've had Dennis on. I had him on within the last week or so. And he's a wealth of knowledge for
00:04:43.840 people who want to be at this event on Saturday night. I think the neat thing about this, we've got
00:04:48.360 Eva Chipiak, who works with Jeff Rath, who's a lawyer. We're going to answer some of the big
00:04:52.780 questions, I think, that are always brought up when it comes to the independence movement,
00:04:56.380 people have concerns about. And I think they're going to address those things. But we're going
00:04:59.860 to have a question and answer as well, which I think should be very interesting and informative
00:05:03.740 for people who aren't quite sure about independence. Or maybe we can pull some people over from the
00:05:08.700 absolute no side who might show up and bring them over to the yes side when it comes to a vote in
00:05:13.860 the upcoming referendum. Yes, that's always our objective, right, is to introduce this movement
00:05:20.240 to people that are undecided. They're thinking about it. They're sitting on the fence. And this
00:05:26.740 is to provide them information so they can use their critical thought and say, you know what?
00:05:33.100 Oh, we've given over $800 billion to Ottawa since the early 60s. What do we have to show for it?
00:05:39.600 That we're a trillion dollars in debt. Our province is close to $100 billion of debt. Where did the
00:05:44.940 money go? Mitch Sylvester always asks this question. And we also prefer this event, John, and you know,
00:05:53.000 we've kept the length of the speeches short because we want people, we really want the audience to be
00:06:00.300 interactive. And we've got such a great lineup, people with great knowledge. And then we're hoping
00:06:08.260 people can get up, write questions, ask, because that's what is really the objective.
00:06:15.440 Yeah, you know, we're going to have cards at the door so people can write down a question. If you're
00:06:19.120 a little bit shy and you don't want to get up in front of a microphone, that's fine. So we'll ask
00:06:23.260 them. Just like us. Well, yeah. And then obviously, if you want to stand up and ask a question, you can
00:06:28.540 do that of the guests we've got and the speakers that we've got. I'll be kind of moderating the evening
00:06:32.980 and throwing in a few questions of my own. You know, I remember sitting down talking about this
00:06:38.020 a few weeks ago and we thought, what are the main questions that are always asked about this
00:06:42.240 movement? And it would be treaties. It would be the fact that people say we're landlocked. It would
00:06:46.960 be people are concerned about the Canada pension plan. Shouldn't be, but we'll answer those questions
00:06:51.640 as well. And then Eva will be there as a lawyer. And she's going to say, what happens the day after
00:06:56.340 we vote? Yes, what is going to happen? But if you've got other questions, this is really the
00:07:00.200 opportunity. I'll tell you what will happen the day after. We'll still have those great
00:07:05.120 mountains that you're showing in the background. Yeah, that's Two Jack Lake up by Banff. I took
00:07:12.560 that when I was bike riding one day. But you know what? That little picture there, it wasn't
00:07:16.640 hanging in the sky when I took the picture, Jeevan. But here's the other thing that I want
00:07:21.940 people to know. We got confirmation today. There will be a petition there for you to sign
00:07:27.140 on Saturday night. So that's great news. So I'm looking forward to putting my John Bolton
00:07:32.000 on that petition. Bring some identification along so you can sign it because we're looking for those
00:07:36.480 177,000. And there's going to be more petitions rolling out. Kind of a slow process. Everybody's
00:07:41.580 kind of had to apply at stayfreealberta.com. And then it's Elections Alberta that has to roll out
00:07:49.300 sort of the credentials for this. So there'll be more and more petitions going out over the next
00:07:53.240 several weeks. So you'll be able to sign when you're in that event as well. Right, Jeevan?
00:07:56.880 Yeah. And, you know, looking back at all the process, logistically, it has been difficult
00:08:03.800 because there's so many processes to follow to ensure we're following the guidelines of Elections
00:08:10.100 Alberta. And, you know, so I keep emailing my canvassers, giving them information saying,
00:08:17.520 okay, this is the process. This is what will happen. And you have to be ready. And Heather and I
00:08:23.100 will also be holding for our canvassers in class training because we want people to be well-trained
00:08:28.880 before they knock on somebody's door and have that person sign the pledge. So, or the petition,
00:08:36.880 sorry. And, you know, that's another job that we have to do. And remember, Ava, Dennis, Corey,
00:08:43.740 yourself, you're all volunteers giving up your valuable time on a Saturday night. You know,
00:08:51.040 very few people will do it. Only people that are committed to the movement will do it.
00:08:55.820 Well, I'm really looking forward to it. It's a once-in-a-lifetime thing. Now, I know we're
00:08:59.300 going to have several hundred seats available there, I understand, which is great, but it will
00:09:04.920 be live-streamed as well. I'll put a link in the description. Max at Freedom Calendar has been great
00:09:10.520 going around the province covering a lot of these events. It will be live-streamed. You'll be able to
00:09:14.520 watch it even after the event because it will be posted on YouTube. So that's good for everybody
00:09:19.160 who wants to be there. But it's seven o'clock, 649 Queensland Drive at the Queensland Community
00:09:23.820 Centre. Eva Chipiuk, Corey Morgan from the Western Standard, The Corey Morgan Show. Dennis Kalma,
00:09:29.100 the writer or the co-writer of The Value of Freedom will be there. And they got a lot of answers. If
00:09:33.340 you've got any, be sure to be there. Come up and say hi as well, because we're interested in
00:09:36.820 meeting all these people, aren't we, Jeevan? Yes. And, you know, after the event, we will stick
00:09:41.980 around at the hall and to talk to people if they may have further questions. And, you know, John,
00:09:49.920 Heather and I truly appreciate yourself, Eva, Dennis, and Corey giving up your time. And all it
00:09:58.780 took was just one phone call and no hesitation. They say, yes, we'll be there. That's the power
00:10:04.800 that I have. Yeah. He's a man you can't say no to, Jeevan. Hey, listen, it's a pleasure. I'm looking
00:10:12.620 forward to it. I'm going to have some fun with this, I'm sure. It's going to be different as well.
00:10:16.860 So I hope people will show up in great numbers. I think it'll be a full house that night. And again,
00:10:20.600 you can go out there and you'll be able to sign the petition. Be patient because it's a bit of a
00:10:24.820 process you've got to go through, but bring your identification if you want to sign. Of course,
00:10:29.400 there's going to be lots of time over the next four months to sign that petition to get
00:10:32.820 the number of signatures we need. Great to talk to you again, Jeevan. And we will see you on
00:10:37.780 Saturday night, tomorrow night. Appreciate it. Thank you, John. Always a pleasure.
00:10:42.380 Jeevan Mangat, organizer of this event coming up at the Queensland Community Center, 649 Queensland
00:10:48.320 Drive Southeast with Stay Free Alberta. Head over to the website if you'd like to donate,
00:10:54.800 stayfreealberta.com. Volunteer as well. And thank you very much for watching. If you like the video,
00:11:00.320 give it a thumbs up, subscribe to the channel, ring the bell for notifications. I will see you
00:11:03.980 in the next one.