I don't think anything could have been done, because it was a decision made by the Government of Canada at that time, not by Parliament. The government decided the referendum would be held in all parts of the Canadian territory but Quebec. So in Quebec, they elected to use the provincial statute, and that was it. The provincial statute was like this. The federal government had no authority to alter the statute, and therefore, if you accept that the provincial rules apply, you have to accept all the provincial rules, including those you dislike.
On November 19th, 2009. See this statement in context.