ICBC's favourite Pastafarian running for Surrey city council

Obi Canuel, the Pastafarian known locally for being denied a driver’s licence for refusing to take his sacred colander off his head, is now a candidate for Surrey city council.

36-year-old Canuel filed his papers Wednesday, according to the Surrey Leader.

If elected, Canuel says he would keep only $20,000 of the job’s $60,000 annual salary, and donate the rest to non-profits.

In fact, the ordained minister in the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster has no political agenda beyond questioning the discrepancy between what city councillors make and the average salaries of their constituents.

I may not win, but I would like to address what I think is a threat to representative democracy http://t.co/Y3U995jVBQ

— OBi Canuel (@Obi_Canuel) October 8, 2014

Canuel has become a familiar name in the media, thanks to his ongoing dispute with the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) about his driver’s licence photo. Calling the colander he wears his “religious headgear,” Canuel has been trying since last November to have his photo taken for the document with his head covered, but the agency refuses to allow him to do so.

Up until last week, ICBC was issuing Canuel temporary paper permits, but those have come to an end.

Undecided on what he may do next in his pursuit, Canuel told Vancity Buzz he does intend to keep up the fight to resolve his strained relationship with ICBC, but will resort to walking and using public transit. That should give the candidate plenty of chances to rub elbows with his potential electors.

Featured image: Canuel in his video about his licence ordeal (Screenshot/YouTube)