‘Her Excellency would like to see you’

CP’s Alexander Panetta reflects on Michaelle Jean’s five-year reign.

To be more precise, she sent an aide to drag in the lone Ottawa-based reporter covering her 2008 trip to the Northwest Territories with a request, which might be ubiquitous at Rideau Hall but counts as rare for an everyday greeting: “Her Excellency would like to see you.”

So the reporter cut short an interview, walked into the store and found himself a moment later standing — alongside Canada’s vicereine and an Inuvialuit couple — in front of a $14.89 pineapple. “We need to do something about this,” Jean said, staring in disbelief. She introduced the reporter to the local couple. “You need to speak to these people.”