Monday 18 February 2013

LAST WEEK'S INQUISITION IS OVER. AND THE PULITZER GOES TO---Mark Hasiuk



Mark Hasiuk has done a very good piece of investigative reporting. 

http://www.themarkhasiukshow.com/2013/02/
He claims that the Chair of the Mayor's Task Force on Affordability appears to have personally benefited from that position. He alleges that a company in which she has an interest seems to have an inside track on some contract. 
The Chair, according to Hasiuk, basically shrugged it off and could not see why there was a problem. 
According to a poll today in the Vancouver Sun, Mayor Robertson, enjoys one of the higher trust ratings in the Metro Vancouver area at around 35%.  Looking at the bottle as two thirds  empty,  65% don't trust him. 
Maybe now things will turn around. Today our Mayor decided against continuing the grand inquisition of Councillor Carr for her alleged breach of the Vancouver Code of Conduct. Carr was accused of the atrocious crime of standing up to the City Manager who blocked Carr's question about the cost of a   Park's Board proposal.  Then, when she stood up in Council and moved that staff answer her question,  the Mayor ruled the motion out of order.  The trouble was, not that it matters, but the motion was as in order as in order motions can be. Orderly Motion wise it had all of the prime characteristics of a planetary system. 
On the other hand if one believes in polls, 65% wouldn't accept whatever the answer was anyway.  Its all rock and roll to them.
But here is the problem:  Like Hammurabi's code, Corporate Policy Number AE-02801 (the Code of Conduct) covers not only staff and elected officials but Advisory Body Members. That is, if the Chair of the Housing Affordability Advisory Committee did something improper in the eyes of someone obsessed with propriety,  the Council can fulminate about it as they had started to do last week when they threatened Adriane Carr.
  • Sec. 8.6 of the Policy states that breaches of the Code of Conduct by Advisory Body Officials shall be submitted in a written complaint addressed to the Mayor. 
  • Sec. 8.7 requires that the Mayor direct any enquiries he considers desirable and recommend appropriate disciplinary action. 
  • Section 8.9 sets out the punishment which includes things like censure and "appropriate" measures.

Before going off half cocked we should all  give the Mayor and Council the benefit of the doubt. Did it occur to you that the reason they dropped the investigation of Councillor Carr was that they were planning to go after their own housing advisory committee? Were they just to busy?
It is not very likely, but if it were true the universe could contain that fact.

No comments:

Post a Comment