A Liberal MP is apologizing for calling himself an engineer during last year’s federal election campaign despite not being licensed as one at the time.

Majid Jowhari, MP for Richmond Hill, “These words were unscripted, were incorrect, and on reflection were potentially misleading,” he stated. “I did not intend to mislead anyone. I regret these statements and sincerely apologize for my actions.”

Jowhari holds a Bachelor of Technology degree in industrial engineering from Ryerson University. He was licensed as a professional engineer from April 1995 to December 1999, according to Professional Engineers Ontario, the provincial regulatory body.

Jowhari said in his apology that his licence was cancelled in 1999 for non-payment.

“When I gave up my licence as a professional engineer, I also gave up the privilege of calling myself an ‘engineer’ and a ‘professional engineer,’ ” Jowhari stated.

The Professional Engineers Act restricts those who are not licensed engineers from using those terms to describe themselves.

Professional Engineers Ontario registrar Gerard McDonald said the regulatory body contacted Jowhari in February 2015 after members of the Richmond Hill riding noticed he had been calling himself an engineer prior to the federal election campaign. Jowhari said there had been reference to him being an engineer in one of his pamphlets.

“We had advised him that he should not be holding himself out as a professional engineer or an engineer because he was no longer a member of the association,” McDonald said. “We usually start off by warning individuals when they’ve done something wrong and in most cases, people will take corrective action. Unfortunately, this persisted and that’s why we got to this case.”

After the regulatory body was again notified by a person living in the riding that Jowhari had touted himself as an engineer during the candidates forum, it charged him under the Professional Engineers Act.

“People who are practicing engineering, who are holding themselves out as engineers and selling their services to the public, the public have a right to know whether or not indeed they are licensed,” McDonald said. “You can say I’m educated as an engineer, but you cannot say I am an engineer.”

Jowhari went on to defeat Tory Michael Parsa in the October 2015 election, drawing 46.9 per cent of the vote to Parsa’s 43.3.

Professional Engineers Ontario withdrew the charges after Jowhari agreed at a pre-hearing conference last month to publicly apologize and donate to the Ontario Professional Engineers Foundation for Education. Jowhari has donated $5,000, according to his apology, “as a show of respect and support for engineering in Ontario and Canada.”

“This experience has taught me a valuable lesson about the need for precision at all times when addressing my engineering education and credentials,” Jowhari stated.

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