See the video of the PG City Council Special Meeting on this here
From Opinion 250.com:
In a special meeting that lasted less than 12 minutes, City Council for the City of Prince George has voted to postpone it’s planned meeting on September 14th (that would have dealt with the possible censure and sanctions against Councillor Brian Skakun) until after the Court has had an opportunity to hear the petition that has been filed by Skakun’s Lawyer.
The possible censure and sanctions are in response to Councillor Skakun’s admission that he released a confidential document. He was found guilty of breaching the Freedom of information and Protection of Privacy Act and fined $750 dollars.
He is appealing that ruling. Today's meeting, held over the lunch hour, Council, ( Mayor Dan Rogers and City Councillors Garth Frizzell, Dave Wilbur, Don Bassermann, Sheri Green, Cameron Stolz and Murry Krause) voted to oppose the request for orders outlined in the petition. Councillor Brian Skakun was not in attendance, nor was Councillor Deborah Munoz.
Councillor Sheri Green said she was disappointed this matter is dragging on, “Of course I respect the Court’s process and we need to follow that “ but she questioned whether this was a tactic designed to carry over into the upcoming election campaign “I think frankly this is a waste of the Court’s time, and I would like to get on with the business of the City, and this is a delay, I don’t know if it’s a tactic, but certainly it’s going to drag us through the election season which perhaps is the goal.” It has been two years since Councillor Skakun was charged with breaching the Act, and three years since the confidential document in question was released to the CBC and published on their website.
Councillor Cameron Stolz commented that there has been a lot of time and effort spent on this issue and the actual sanctions proposed are no more than a slap on the wrist. “My concern is that we’ve spent a lot of effort time and energy on this, something that is, to be very perfectly candid, a minor slap on the wrist.” He added the censure motion would not prevent Councillor Skakun from taking part in any closed meetings of Council, nor would it restrict his access as a Councillor from being able to sit in Council Chambers, “ It will not fringe upon the duties he was elected to do. It is simply Council saying his actions , we think , were inappropriate and there are some consequences for that.”
In the event the Court can hear the petition and the City’s response soon, that would then set Council back to the drawing board for holding a special meeting to set a date for the censure and sanction hearing. Also at issue, is the court’s jurisdiction on how a municipal government conducts its business. The City believes the Court will rule that it has no jurisdiction in this matter, thereby ruling in the City’s favour. While there have been other communities in B.C. which have censured members of Council, there is no information to suggest those matters were put before the courts.
From Opinion 250.com:
In a special meeting that lasted less than 12 minutes, City Council for the City of Prince George has voted to postpone it’s planned meeting on September 14th (that would have dealt with the possible censure and sanctions against Councillor Brian Skakun) until after the Court has had an opportunity to hear the petition that has been filed by Skakun’s Lawyer.
The possible censure and sanctions are in response to Councillor Skakun’s admission that he released a confidential document. He was found guilty of breaching the Freedom of information and Protection of Privacy Act and fined $750 dollars.
He is appealing that ruling. Today's meeting, held over the lunch hour, Council, ( Mayor Dan Rogers and City Councillors Garth Frizzell, Dave Wilbur, Don Bassermann, Sheri Green, Cameron Stolz and Murry Krause) voted to oppose the request for orders outlined in the petition. Councillor Brian Skakun was not in attendance, nor was Councillor Deborah Munoz.
Councillor Sheri Green said she was disappointed this matter is dragging on, “Of course I respect the Court’s process and we need to follow that “ but she questioned whether this was a tactic designed to carry over into the upcoming election campaign “I think frankly this is a waste of the Court’s time, and I would like to get on with the business of the City, and this is a delay, I don’t know if it’s a tactic, but certainly it’s going to drag us through the election season which perhaps is the goal.” It has been two years since Councillor Skakun was charged with breaching the Act, and three years since the confidential document in question was released to the CBC and published on their website.
Councillor Cameron Stolz commented that there has been a lot of time and effort spent on this issue and the actual sanctions proposed are no more than a slap on the wrist. “My concern is that we’ve spent a lot of effort time and energy on this, something that is, to be very perfectly candid, a minor slap on the wrist.” He added the censure motion would not prevent Councillor Skakun from taking part in any closed meetings of Council, nor would it restrict his access as a Councillor from being able to sit in Council Chambers, “ It will not fringe upon the duties he was elected to do. It is simply Council saying his actions , we think , were inappropriate and there are some consequences for that.”
In the event the Court can hear the petition and the City’s response soon, that would then set Council back to the drawing board for holding a special meeting to set a date for the censure and sanction hearing. Also at issue, is the court’s jurisdiction on how a municipal government conducts its business. The City believes the Court will rule that it has no jurisdiction in this matter, thereby ruling in the City’s favour. While there have been other communities in B.C. which have censured members of Council, there is no information to suggest those matters were put before the courts.
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