Wilmot councillors accused of 'bullying' by colleague cleared of code of conduct violations

Two Wilmot Township councillors have been cleared of code of conduct violations after a council colleague accused them of "bullying and harassing" behaviour during a town hall meeting in January.

In a complaint to the township's integrity commissioner, Coun. Steven Martin said he and Coun. Lillianne Dunstall planned to hold a town hall for residents on Jan. 4 to discuss the township's budget and proposed tax increase. The budget had been a contentious issue in the township because the original proposal recommended raising property taxes by 50 per cent.

Martin says he sent an email to his fellow councillors asking them not to attend the meeting because he was worried they would accidentally hit quorum for a council meeting. Once more than four councillors are together at a meeting, it can be viewed as a council meeting and if it's not previously advertised as such, it can be considered an illegal meeting.

On the day of the meeting, Coun. Stewart Cressman arrived, then Coun. Kris Wilkinson and Coun. Harvir Sidhu also arrived.

Martin says he asked Wilkinson and Sidhu to leave but both refused.

"I said that we might be fined, and I did not want to risk that. Some people said that I should leave. I believe that Coun. Wilkinson encouraged or incited others in the crowd to say derogatory things to me. It is my belief that Coun. Wilkinson participated and/or encouraged people to make fun of me. At this point Coun. Cressman stood up and said that he would leave so as to alleviate the problem," Martin said in his complaint to the integrity commissioner.

Martin ended up leaving his own meeting to avoid reaching quorum.

"It is my contention that Coun. Wilkinson and Coun. Sidhu were 'bullying and harassing' by not respecting my role as host of the meeting. They also did not respect my decision on the quorum issue. Even if I am wrong, on the issue of quorum or an illegal meeting, they could have respected my concern since it was my meeting," Martin wrote in his complaint.

Benjamin Drory of the mediation firm ADR Chambers is integrity commissioner for the township. In a report received by council Monday night, Drory said Wilkinson and Sidhu did not violate the township's code of conduct by attending the meeting.

But Drory said it was clear to him, and likely to people who attended the Jan. 4 town hall meeting, that the councillors were not working together.

"Nobody who attended the town hall should feel particularly good about what took place," Drory wrote in the report.

"[The] town hall struck me as unseemly in its apparent absence of goodwill, and an unwillingness among members to simply work with each other towards a common good."

Drory said it's not his role to "resolve the rift" between councillors, but he hoped they could find ways to work together.

"I make no suggestion about how they could specifically do that, but I hope they will make some kind of concerted effort to do so," Drory wrote.

Wilkinson and Sidhu have since apologized to their council colleagues for what transpired at the meeting.

During Monday night's council meeting, Wilkinson said attending and not leaving the meeting was a "heat of the moment decision" that "in hindsight, we would do differently."

"I welcome the guidance offered by this report," he said. "I take it very seriously."

Sidhu said he acted out of what he thought was the best interest of the people he represents.

"It just comes down to we're all passionate for what we're doing. We all want to do what's best for our residents," he said.

"Sometimes we disagree and have arguments, but we make up and I'm confident that every councillor around this horseshoe is doing it for the right reasons and we're doing it for the residents and the taxpayers."