By Laural Samson [1]
QUINTE WEST – Quinte West councillor Fred Kuypers will lose one week’s pay and be forced to attend further sensitivity training after making discriminatory remarks to the owners of a local business owner.
That decision came after a recommendation from Integrity Commissioner Tony Fleming to council on Monday night.
He called Kuyper’s comments discriminatory and racially offensive and told council that they do constitute a breach of code conduct.
Fleming was asked to investigate after an incident at a virtual council meeting in June.
The owners of JERKabago food truck, Joshua Blake and Saiqa Sheikh, were faced with complaints from neighbours about smoke and garbage.
Discussing these complaints at the virtual council meeting, Kuypers made racially offensive remarks towards the businesspeople.
This prompted a full investigation by the Integrity Commissioner Tony Fleming, who talked to both Blake and Sheikh.
Although Kuypers apologized publicly, he did not apologize directly to Blake and Sheikh, which Fleming said “would have expressed greater remorse if the apology had also been made in person.”
Following the report, it was decided that he will lose one week of pay and undergo more sensitivity training, on top of the training he’s already received.
“After speaking with Councillor Kuypers, we are not convinced that he appreciates that his behaviour was unacceptable, despite receiving this training,” Fleming noted in the end of the report.
Mayor Jim Harrison also released a statement on the decision:
“I am pleased that Council voted to accept the Integrity Commissioner’s recommendations for Councillor Kuypers. This is our first experience working with Mr. Fleming, and I am satisfied with the outcome.
Councillor Kuypers was elected by the people of Trenton Ward to represent them. It is our responsibility to make sure he has the tools he needs to be an effective and inclusive representative of their interests.
It is my hope that with more training, Councillor Kuypers will be able to understand and accept the hurt that was caused by his words. As was mentioned by Mr. Fleming in his report, words have power, especially from elected officials.”
More to come.