Nanaimo-Info-blog: City Councillors Like Transparency … Sometimes

Councillors Bestwick, Kipp and McKaySupport Open AccountabilityBalance Of Council Prefer Secrecy
City Council watchers know it appears that city council on the advice of city staff only seem to be open to the concept of transparency at election time. But when it comes to actually being open and accountable for your decisions the majority of council prefers the veil of secrecy known as ‘in camera’ meetings.
At the council meeting of June 11, 2012, Councillor Bill Bestwick brought a motion that would have allowed for the record of how Councillors voted at in camera meetings be released when that information was released to the public. The only councillors to support this notion of openness were Kipp and McKay.
I have personally been trying to get more information about how the decision to spend $16 million on a shiny new office, rather than $4 million to upgrade the existing annex for nearly a year now and while any time I have spoken with councillors as to why they will not vote to release how they voted on this matter, they all tell me they support the release of that information. However, they never seen to get it past a council vote, which of course is another of those ‘in camera’ affairs.
I suspect Councillors will continue to pay lip service to the notion of transparency and it will once again become an issue in a couple of years come next election. Just remember which ones mean what they say, as was demonstrated by last nights vote. Their names are Bestwick, Kipp and McKay.

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