City Council F@&%ed Around and Found Out
By Kelly Allard
Now They're Whining
Several councillors have recently commented on the Mayor and the Judicial Review. These Council members seem to be blaming the mayor for exercising her legal right to seek a legal review, for not acquiescing to their demands and having the gall to hold her ground until a judge has spoken.
Yes, Council had every right under the Municipal Government Act to do what they did on March 21 2024..
Mayor Clark has every right to seek a Judicial Review.
Mayor Clark has every right to refuse a settlement or mediation until the judge has decided..
Not many people would have the courage to stand up for what they believe is right in the face of such public scrutiny and bashing by other members of Council. Mayor Clark could have filed a few Code of Conduct complaints of her own but she chose to take the high road and let the Judicial Review sort it all out.
There were a lot of residents who thought that because all eight agreed that the mayor must have done something wrong. City Manager Ann Mitchell and the eight councillors gaslit Mayor Clark so much about Administrative Organizational (AO) Bylaw 4662 that Clark went and got an external legal opinion at her own expense because she was doubting herself. That legal opinion confirmed Mayor Clark’s view that City Manager Ann Mitchell was wrong.
To this day, Mitchell has not produced the legal opinion she said she obtained from the City Solicitor .
Clark’s lawyers accused Mitchell of lying about ever having a legal opinion.
The City’s lawyers did not dispute that statement.
The Council Members who are now Speaking Out and Speaking Up are sounding like petulant teenagers whinging and whining about getting into trouble because someone told on them. Here’s what I told my children -
(Person X ) did not get you into trouble.
Your own behaviour got you into trouble.
City Medicine Hat Press release April 1 2024
I find it fascinating that they are Speaking Out and Speaking Up when on April 1 2024 they said.
“...this legislation requires us to keep in confidence matters discussed during closed sessions of Council. To uphold that duty, we are unable to respond to, or correct any misstatements, relating to those issues.“ (City of Medicine Hat Press Release)
Councillor Sharps has actually accused the Mayor of lying, telling the anonymous writer of an online blog
“Perhaps she (the mayor) would have admitted that she was the one who banned a particular media group from the Council floor and allowed administration to take the blame. “
We at Community TV /The Trash Panda do not believe what Sharps said. We have read the AO Bylaw and know that the Mayor simply does not have the power to give orders. Item ten on page two of Administrative Organizational Bylaw 4662 says -
“No individual member of Council may give orders, directives or instructions to the City Manager, Managing Directors, City Clerk, City Solicitor or any other City employee.”
Councillor Hider talking about the conflict is very surprising since most of her contribution around the horseshoe amounts to nothing much more than cheerleading. While it is important to praise people, it is not enough when you are sitting at the horseshoe.
It is the duty of councillors to participate, they need to bring more to the table than just their pompoms.
Did you know?
Cassi Hider received $1000 for her election campaign from Craig Elder, operator of that same online anonymous blog.)
I've had complete strangers come up to me in public to tell me how disappointed they are with Council; Hider and Sharps are names that come up a LOT. Community TV /The Trash Panda receives a number of anonymous tips about behaviour of Council Members. Again, Sharps and Hider are names that come up frequently and not in a good way. Clark’s name comes up too but only as someone who had shown nothing but kindness and respect towards others. Even people who thought Clark was wrong for asking the questions at the Shitshow Showdown admit she was polite that night; they say they have not ever seen Clark be unkind.
The abuse that is being hurled at the Mayor right now is unbecoming of members of Council. They’re trying to say that there is more going on behind the scenes. We have not heard of any more Code of Conduct complaints being filed. If there was more going on, then by all means, show us the receipts.
Abusers often blame others for their own actions. This reminds me of something an elderly man told me recently when we were talking about abuse. He said that his mother could have avoided being punched by his father by keeping her mouth shut.
At the Judicial Review, Justice Rosemary Nation seemed to think that the Mayor could have handled the questioning in a better way. Even so, Nation had some serious issues with the sanctions; she said that it seemed like Council just went down and ticked everything off on the list. Nation made the City’s lawyers (Michael Swanberg and Daina Young) try to justify such severe sanctions including the fact that there was no time limit on the sanctions. They said there was no time limit on the sanctions because we are only just over a year away from an election. (What!?)
Justice Nation also said that she originally planned to do an oral decision but that she will do a written one instead. That to me sounds like this case may set precedent.
Here’s what I’d be thinking if I was in Mayor Clark’s position
This is only my personal opinion, I have no idea what Mayor Clark is thinking.
Since Council has done their best to keep everything secret, I’d want everything on the record.
The Unredacted Kingsgate Report makes Councillor Sharps look petty and self serving.My arguments show that I believed I was acting in the public’s best interest while Sharps was apparently worried about losing customers and damaging her own reputation.
The City Manager has already been caught out in a lie in trying to defend the bypassing of AO Bylaw 4662.
Council has had five months to reconsider their position. No sanctions have been lifted or even reduced.
No explanations have been given to the public to explain Council’s apparent outrageous actions.
I’d be suspicious of any offers for a remedy as the court date approached. Keeping it out of court often means keeping it secret so I’m reluctant to do it.
Besides, I’m too pissed for that now; I want to set an example. I’ve already had to spend my own money to defend myself as Council denied me the opportunity to be indemnified for actions I took while performing my job.
Meanwhile, Council gave Mitchell money to pursue legal action against me, thereby showing their bias.
I no longer trust Council to do the right thing.
I want a neutral 3rd party to decide.
I’ve had the most extreme sanctions placed on me available to Council including docking my pay. I’ve nothing left to lose. I’m taking it all the way!
The most dangerous person
is the one with nothing to lose
Council created this situation. By not taking the opportunity over the past five months to back down, they’ve only fanned the flames of public outrage. Even Nicole Frey, the resident who started the petition to have Mayor Clark removed, believes the sanctions were unjust.
Yes, Council had every right to do what they did but to quote Ian Malcolm of Jurassic Park
“(Council Was) So Preoccupied With Whether Or Not They Could, They Didn’t Stop To Think If They Should”
#yxh #medicinehat #shitshowshowdown #linnsieclark #shilasharps #cassihider #comtv #commuitytv #thetrashpanda #judicialreview
