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OBSERVER QUESNEL - CARIBOO
SINCE 1908
Friday, May 11, 2012
VOL. 98 NO. 72
www.quesnelobserver.com
$ 34
1
includes HST
COUNCIL
Thapar calls for Sjostrom’s resignation AUTUMN MacDONALD Observer Reporter After hearing of departing city manager John Stecyk’s severance package of more than $170,000, Coun. Sushil Thapar is asking for Mayor Mary Sjostrom’s resignation. “If that’s the way she’s mismanaging the city, she should step down,� he said. After last week’s press release, stating city manager John Stecyk was “resigning,� Thapar questioned the release calling it “misleading and false.� He then filed a Freedom of Information request surrounding any severance Stecyk was receiving upon departure. “If there are financial implications, the public should know,� he said. This Monday, at an in-camera (private) meeting, city councillors Ed Coleman, Laurey-Anne Roodenburg, Scott Elliott, John Brisco and acting mayor Mike Cave (Mayor Mary Sjostrom is away in China) passed a motion of censure. It states: “WHEREAS members of council have a legal duty to maintain confidentiality; AND WHEREAS improper disclosure of confidential information, particularly involving personal information, may expose the City to liability; AND WHEREAS Councillor Thapar has disclosed to the media confidential information in clear breach of confidentiality rules and a specific agreement; NOW THEREFORE COUNCIL censures Councilor Thapar for his failure to comply with the Community Charter with respect to
rules of confidentiality related to closed Council meeting matters.� The release says the motion is based on “improper disclosure by Coun. Sushil Thapar.� It then cites several sections of the Community Charter that “were of concern, most notably: Section 90, which outlines what issues municipalities may or must discuss in-camera, issues mostly related to labour, land or legal.� Thapar is fighting censure, stating he did nothing to violate his oath. “All I did was ask a question,� he said. “Taxpayers deserved to know how much this was costing them. I did not disclose any information, I asked questions.� Thapar says city council is making decisions in-camera, decisions that are costing taxpayers money. “And they don’t want people to know about it,� he added. Thapar also pointed to the recruitment of a fourth city manager during Sjostrom’s reign as mayor. “Her mismanagement is costing the taxpayers money,� he said. “All I’m doing is being honest.� Thapar said if the severance package figure would have been available from the beginning, he would not have had to file an FOI. “I just wanted the truth,� he said. “I’m not the liability here, she [Sjostrom] is. Her actions are costing taxpayers money, not mine.� Thapar says the next step is to call a public meeting. No date has yet been set. Stecyk’s final remuneration payment from the city was $170,469.13; he was hired Jan. 4, 2011.
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Happy Mother’s Day New Beginnings pre-school held their annual Mother’s Day Tea Wednesday, where students sang songs for their parents and served their mothers, grandmothers and caregivers sweets. Taylor offers her mother Kirsten a sweet treat. For more photos see Wednesday’s Observer.
Good day, Quesnel. Thanks for reading — and that includes loyal subscriber Gordon Cole! To join the Observer family, please call 250-992-2121 and ask for circulation.
Annie Gallant photo
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