Sometimes bad behaviour come back to bite a person in the posterior more than once.
Niels Konge finds himself in that very circumstance.
The City of YellowknifeSA国际影视传媒檚 integrity commissioner, lawyer Sheldon Toner, has assessed KongeSA国际影视传媒檚 conduct from September and November of last year and, in a report released at the beginning of the week, he determined that the city councillor breached the code of conduct that he swore to uphold.
The incidents were well publicized at the time.
In September, the occasionally unpolished councillor brought up the SA国际影视传媒�60s Scoop SA国际影视传媒� when Indigenous children were taken from their families and placed with non-Indigenous foster families SA国际影视传媒� as discussion revolved around problems posed by the pandemic for small businesses. It was a clumsy and tasteless attempt at an analogy.
In November, Konge compared the plight of those unvaccinated by choice to the historical segregation that Black people endured. Somehow, he arrived at the conclusion that there was some sort of parallel between the public spaces that unvaccinated people were not allowed to access and Black people being prevented from sitting at the front of buses decades ago. Mayor Rebecca Alty referred to the statement as SA国际影视传媒渃ompletely unacceptableSA国际影视传媒� while Coun. Shauna Morgan said it was a SA国际影视传媒渞eally inaccurate and inappropriate comparison to make and could be profoundly disrespectful to people in groups who have historically suffered from systemic oppression.SA国际影视传媒�
The Black Advocacy Coalition Up North quickly condemned the comment and demanded a public apology.
In light of those major gaffes and the integrity commissionerSA国际影视传媒檚 report, council must now consider what actions should be taken, if any.
Whether council will raise KongeSA国际影视传媒檚 history from his previous term when, in 2017, he was reprimanded for failing to treat city employees in a SA国际影视传媒渃ourteous mannerSA国际影视传媒� remains to be seen.
Council has no authority to remove Konge outright, just from a meeting. Ousting him altogether would have only have spurred allegations of SA国际影视传媒渃ancel cultureSA国际影视传媒� among his supporters anyway.
ItSA国际影视传媒檚 important to remember that Konge did issue apologies after each incident SA国际影视传媒� the first on the same day, the second took several days.
SA国际影视传媒淚 did not mean for my words to hurt anyone, but they did and for that, I am deeply sorry,SA国际影视传媒� he said the second time.
Contrition ought to count for something.
But the number of chances any elected official should get ought to be limited. City councillors, like MLAs and members of Parliament, must be held to a higher ethical standard than the average citizen. They all pledge to uphold the public trust.
Yet Konge is a repeat offender. Imagine if heSA国际影视传媒檇 uttered those appalling and unbecoming comments on a national stage while representing Yellowknife at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, for example. It would be a real embarrassment for our city.
Konge seems to pride himself on his frankness. He has a duty and obligation to represent his supporters, as well as the best interests of Yellowknifers. But in doing so, the words he chooses deliver a message of their own.
In light of the integrity commissionerSA国际影视传媒檚 report, council, hopefully unanimously, should be equally frank with Konge: WeSA国际影视传媒檙e quickly losing patience with your unnecessary blunders. Get your act together.
