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Is Rob Ford doing a good job? (pg. 6)
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| Magnetonium |
For his ignorance and selfishness, and abuse of office, he should be banned from running for mayor ever again. If he can do these things, imagine what other corrupt moves he can be capable of ... Ford violated basic principles that any mayor should abide by. The fact that the council did not act on Feb 7th while well aware of the conflict of interest, and only some lucky move by a concerned citizen resulted in this decision - shame on you, Toronto councillors!
http://www.thespec.com/news/local/a...ord-from-office
Judge dismisses Toronto Mayor Rob Ford from office
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Mayor Rob Ford has been found guilty of conflict of interest and will be removed from office.
But Justice Charles Hackland has granted Ford a 14-day stay and he will be allowed to run again.
It is assumed Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday will take over Ford’s duties.
Hackland found the mayor in violation of the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act. He had the option of banning Ford from running for up to seven years.
The hotly awaited decision follows a two-day hearing in early September that saw Ford grilled over his conduct at a Feb. 7 council meeting and the events that led up to it.
The city’s integrity commissioner ruled in 2010 that then-councillor Ford was wrong to use official letterhead and other city resources to solicit donations from people lobbying him for his namesake football foundation.
Council agreed and ordered Ford to repay $3,150 to lobbyists, their clients and one private firm. Ford ignored six reminders from the integrity commissioner before she brought the issue back to council Feb. 7.
There, Ford made an impassioned speech about why he shouldn’t be forced to repay the money, arguing it was spent distributing football equipment to schools. He voted with the 22-12 majority to cancel the order that he repay.
In March, Toronto resident Paul Magder alleged Ford broke a provision in the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act which states elected officials can’t speak to, or vote upon, items in which they have a “pecuniary interest.”
At the hearing before Hackland, Magder’s lawyer Clayton Ruby argued Ford was “reckless” and “wilfully ignorant” of the law when he did not recuse himself from the debate and vote.
Ford, who was on council for a decade before becoming mayor in late 2010, testified he never read the Conflict of Interest Act or the councillor orientation handbook. Nor did he attend councillor training sessions that covered conflicts of interest.
The mayor promised in his oath of office to “disclose conflicts of interest” but, when asked by Ruby if he understood the words, Ford said: “No. My interpretation of a conflict of interest, again, is it takes two parties and the city must benefit or a member of council must benefit.”
Ruby accused Ford of “wilful blindness.”
“As mayor he ought to have had a clear understanding of his obligations. This entire pattern of conduct shows that he chose to remain ignorant, and substituted his own view for that of the law,” Ruby said.
Ford, longtime coach of Etobicoke’s Don Bosco Eagles, vehemently disagreed, saying he acted only in the best interests of high school students.
Ford’s lawyer, Alan Lenczner, offered a three-pronged defence.
He said council had no legislative authority to make Ford repay $3,150 in football charity donations in the first place.
Second, that if council did impose a penalty it was under Toronto’s code of conduct, not the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act, so Ford could not have breached the act. If the Act applied, elected officials could not defend themselves when criticized by the integrity commissioner, he added.
Finally, that if Ford did err by not declaring a conflict, it was an inadvertent “error in judgment.”
“He may (have been) wrong (to vote),” Lenczner said. “And the case may allow for that, because that’s what an error of judgment is. You’re wrong, but that’s an excuse under the Act.”
Ford himself went into the trial saying he did nothing wrong. During the grilling by Ruby, he allowed that, if he had been advised that voting on the matter could land him in court, he wouldn’t have voted.
“I would have declared a conflict like I have every other time,” the mayor said. “But now that we’re here, I’m here. I can’t change what happened.”
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| Yohan |
| you know, Adam Vaughan will be the next mayor. Or Olivia Chow. Ugh |
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| LightsOut |
Not really a Rob Ford fan, I'm pretty indifferent, but I can't help but feel this is kind of a witch hunt. I don't know all the details, and correct me if I'm wrong, but he was kicked out because he used mayoral letterheard to send out letters about his charity? And because thay secured him a donation of $3000+ for said charity, he's getting the boot? I get that it's somewhat a conflict on interest, but isn't this a little harsh (it's for a charity afterall)? Wasn't Dalton Mcguinty found guilty in a conlict of interest case that amounted to millions? And yet nothing happened...
And now if a by-election is called, we could end up with someone like Adam Vaughan in charge.... |
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| PivotTechno |
| quote: | Originally posted by LightsOut
correct me if I'm wrong, but he was kicked out because he used mayoral letterheard to send out letters about his charity? And because thay secured him a donation of $3000+ for said charity, he's getting the boot? |
Sort of, but not quite. He was ordered by the city's integrity commissioner to pay back the donated amount, which he didn't. He then participated in a vote in council to remove the sanction against him, which is where the conflict of interest arose.
Insignificant amount or no, there was a clear breach of the act, and thankfully the judge ignored tweedledum's plea of ignorance in the matter - shameful for someone holding the highest elected office in this city to claim he didn't know he was doing anything wrong.
And please, voting TOTAs, the next time an election rolls around, consider the perils of voting in a populist figure, who looks and sounds like the average bloke on the street, but who is actually the polar opposite of that polished and projected image:
The great lie of the populist politician
Ford's family biz is worth over $100 mil - does anyone honestly believe he represents the average Toronto citizen? |
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| smuncky |
| quote: | Originally posted by PivotTechno
Ford's family biz is worth over $100 mil - does anyone honestly believe he represents the average Toronto citizen? |
he likes to drink beer, uses simple words, coaches football, drives in a huge SUV, follows the law when he chooses, lies, etc. |
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| hardcore trancer |
| quote: | Originally posted by smuncky
he likes to drink beer, uses simple words, coaches football, drives in a huge SUV, follows the law when he chooses, lies, etc. |
and him and his family are worth about $100 million. you know just like your average guy..:stongue: |
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| FunkyCrew |
| quote: | Originally posted by LightsOut
Not really a Rob Ford fan, I'm pretty indifferent, but I can't help but feel this is kind of a witch hunt. I don't know all the details, and correct me if I'm wrong, but he was kicked out because he used mayoral letterheard to send out letters about his charity? And because thay secured him a donation of $3000+ for said charity, he's getting the boot? |
not really
he was told to repay, which he ignored & proceeded the vote on the issue, when he wasn't allowed to be part of the vote
typical Ford move. |
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| Nrg2Nfinit |
Honestly it's ridiculous.
it's not like he used tax payers money (well maybe 0.01 cent for the letterhead) to get the donation. why should he pay it back? who cares?
It's like using a company pen to write a personal cheque, or a note for yourself.
who hasnt done that LOL.
there is a reason why the left is laughed at in canada now.
I'm actually ashamed to be liberal.
100 mill net worth has nothing to do with how he runs the city. it just means he is a successful business man and he knows how to keep the bottom line black.
better than your average ndper who thinks money grows on trees IMO.
Anyways its understood that he broke the law and didnt follow the system to a tee, but this definitely reeks of witch hunt.. the left has had it out for him since day 1.
let us not forget the whole garbage bag scenario LOL. |
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| LightsOut |
Okay so I think i understand how this all played out now...
But I have one more question. If he wasn't suppose to vote in the motion that was against him, who let him vote then? Is their no "speaker" at city hall, like in the house of commons, who presides over these types of things and keeps everything in order? Seems kind of Mickey Mouse, no? |
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| Ozmozis |
| quote: | Originally posted by Nrg2Nfinit
Honestly it's ridiculous.
it's not like he used tax payers money (well maybe 0.01 cent for the letterhead) to get the donation. why should he pay it back? who cares?
It's like using a company pen to write a personal cheque, or a note for yourself.
who hasnt done that LOL.
there is a reason why the left is laughed at in canada now.
I'm actually ashamed to be liberal.
100 mill net worth has nothing to do with how he runs the city. it just means he is a successful business man and he knows how to keep the bottom line black.
better than your average ndper who thinks money grows on trees IMO.
Anyways its understood that he broke the law and didnt follow the system to a tee, but this definitely reeks of witch hunt.. the left has had it out for him since day 1.
let us not forget the whole garbage bag scenario LOL. |
Well said.
I hope Adam Vaughan runs for major and wins so you guys can really see what a bad Major is lol |
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| Magnetonium |
There was no witch hunt for Christ's sakes. Ford and his team have literally been like a bunch of barking dogs ... or more appropriately, bullies, while running Toronto. Intimidation, verbal attacks, and yes corruption. I still recall how Ford threatened to fire senior officials for not going along with his road plans in Toronto (forgot the name of the street - can someone fill me in on this one), and thankfully that person stood up their ground and not bulged.
And now its nice to see Councillor Giorgio Mammoliti gone, another bully who verbally attacked others in protecting Ford.
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/art...t-can-run-again
Oh yes it does mention it:
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Mammoliti has been one of Ford’s staunchest defenders and verbally attacked others who crossed Ford. He whipped votes at council for the administration with a thumb’s up or thumb’s down before important votes. |
Funny how Ford's family business is worth over 100 million and yet he pressured for solicitations that amounted to measely $3000-something dollars. That he refused to pay back despite the order. Greed and ignorance?
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The saga began in 2010, when the city’s integrity commissioner, Janet Leiper, ruled that then-councillor Ford was wrong to use official letterhead and other city resources to solicit donations from people lobbying the city.
Council agreed and ordered Ford to pay the money back. Ford refused to do so, and he ignored six reminders from the integrity commissioner before she brought the issue back to council for the fateful Feb. 7 debate. In March, Toronto resident Paul Magder, aided by prominent lawyer Clayton Ruby, filed a lawsuit alleging Ford broke the law.
At the September court hearing, Ruby argued Ford was “reckless” and “wilfully ignorant” of the law when he did not recuse himself from the debate and vote.
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Case closed. Thank Lord that Toronto actually has ONE concerned citizen who took up action against ignorance and corruption. As it seems that no politician was brave enough to deal with this issue. Very sad actually. |
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| Tordan |
| quote: | Originally posted by LightsOut
Okay so I think i understand how this all played out now...
But I have one more question. If he wasn't suppose to vote in the motion that was against him, who let him vote then? Is their no "speaker" at city hall, like in the house of commons, who presides over these types of things and keeps everything in order? Seems kind of Mickey Mouse, no? |
Yes, there is a speaker and she warned him not to vote but he ignored her. Just as he ignored the integrity commissioner every time she asked him to pay back the money. I believe she sent him 6 letters asking him to do so. His refusal is what prompted the vote in the first place. |
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