Oh Where Has City Hall Gone: MULVIHILL

City of Ottawa council and staff have been flying under the radar for years now. So low they’re hardly a blip on the radar and with little accountability.

To whom do they answer? Certainly not the taxpayers.

Staff has difficulty following council direction. Rarely is staff called on issues that would raise anyone’s eyebrows. Perhaps because it’s easier for council to focus on the more meatier issues such as deflecting Lansdowne 2.0 and the Tewin development.

Justice William Hourigan’s scathing final report on LRT provincial inquiry was met with a shrug of shoulders and a my-bad attitude from both council and staff. Lessons learned? Not many.

The mayor and councillors either don’t bother to read staff reports or they do yet hope that no one will notice what passes the smell test under their elected noses. Auditor General Nathalie Gougeon is no exception. She should have taken Justice Hourigan’s final report to heart rather than relegate any investigation into LRT Phase II to the bottom of her to-do list. It’s an investigation that likely will never see the light of day.

Recently, millions of dollars in revenue from traffic camera fines was allocated elsewhere rather than where council directed. A see-no-evil, hear-no-evil approach by staff seems to be par for the course while councillors plead ignorance.

A top-to-bottom shake-up at city hall desperately needs to happen soon.

Donna Mulvihill is a community activist and former hospital coordinator.

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City Commits To ‘Take Time’ On Inquest Requests

Name Names In Traffic Camera Scandal: THE VOTER

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