There are few people I can think of who would make a better Member of Parliament than Rob Dobrucki, who has just announced that he’s running for the federal NDP nomination in that riding:

The treasurer of the Ontario New Democratic Party, and a two-time federal election candidate for city residents, announced Tuesday he will seek his party’s nod during next week’s Welland riding nomination meeting where he will face off against two-time candidate Jody DiBartolomeo of Port Colborne.

“The people of Welland riding need a strong, progressive voice to represent them in Ottawa. While campaigning on a progressive agenda in the 2004 election, the Liberal party has failed to deliver on that agenda,” Dobrucki says.

“While the Conservatives have repeatedly used the Gomery Inquiry to disrupt the House of Commons, NDP Leader Jack Layton instead has taken the initiative presented by a minority government situation to force the Liberal government to help ordinary Canadians — to better protect workers’ pensions, to lower tuition fees and to build more affordable homes for Canadian families,” he says.

I’ve known him for years, and honestly — grab a dictionary, look up the word “mensch” and you’ll find Rob’s picture. He’s worked his entire adult life to making things better for people in his community, and he’s raised decency to the level of an art form.

In short, after the week we’ve had, he’s exactly what Parliament needs right now.