Harper’s Former Director of Communications Appointed as Citizenship Judge

This article was last updated on April 16, 2022

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The former director of communications for Canadian Prime Minister, Stephen Harper, who resigned due to health reasons last year, has now been offered a new job as a citizenship judge. The one-time journalist, Angelo Persichilli, who has ably served as Harper’s chief spokesman for several months in 2011 and 2012, will be appointed as the citizenship judge for the Greater Toronto Area.

The Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister, Jason Kenney, made the announcement on Friday afternoon recommending to his cabinet colleagues that Persichilli is most suitable for the position. The salary range for the job is $91,800 to $107,900. Soon after the announcement, NDP opposition began criticizing the development,  as its ethics critic, Charlie Angus, alleged that “this really shows the cynicism of the prime minister.”  It was added that “Mr. Harper promised Canadians he would stop partisan patronage but he has broken that promise again and again. From the Senate on down, this appointment is just more of who you know in the PMO.” On the other hand, Interim Liberal leader, Bob Rae, seemed a little unconcerned from the announcement as he tweeted that it was an “appointment worthy of a late Friday afternoon.”

The announcement was made by the authorities in a five-paragraph news release that focused on the journalistic background of Persichilli “in both ethnic and mainstream media.” The release mentioned that “citizenship judges are responsible for making decisions on citizenship applications, presiding over citizenship ceremonies and administering the oath of citizenship to new citizens.”