Wetaskiwin shelter critic called destroying recall petition a 'mistake'

Wetaskiwin Mayor Tyler Gandam, left, Wetaskiwin resident Debby Hunker, right. (The Canadian Press)

A tenacious critic of an emergency shelter in Wetaskiwin, Debby Hunker – who filed a recall petition against Mayor Tyler Gandam - has destroyed the petition after not receiving sufficient signatures.

The Municipal Government Act’s (MGA) section 240.92 (1), requires the recall petitioner to return the signatures to the city’s chief administrative officer (CAO) regardless.

The guide reads as such:

Within 2 days of the day on which a chief administrative officer publishes a declaration in accordance with section 240.9(a) or 240.91(2)(a), the representative recall petitioner shall

(a) return the recall petition referred to in section 240.6 to the chief administrative officer, and

(b)destroy all additional copies of the recall petition that the representative recall petitioner, or any person acting on behalf of the representative recall petitioner, made.

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Now, hunker told Pipestone Flyer in an email that destroying the copies of the recall petition, was a ‘misunderstanding’ on her part.

Hunker also filed a statutory declaration to the province, saying that she had destroyed the copies.

“I have a commissioned Statutory Declaration that states that it was a misunderstanding on my part that resulted in me destroying the petition and that no copies had ever been made,” said Hunker.

Hunker further mentioned in her email that she had taken responsibility for the mistake of destroying the original petition.

“As for whether there will be any legal consequences against me, I don’t believe that Municipal Affairs is interested in pursuing anything. I haven’t been contacted by them, and if I am, I will forward the Stat Dec that I submitted to the CAO. I have taken responsibility for the mistake.”

The petition, which aimed to have Mayor Tyler Gandam removed from his position, collected close to 1,900 signatures, said Hunker, the petition’s organizer.

The petition was started on Feb. 12 and the 90 days to collect signatures expired on April 12. The petition had to have 5,038 signatures to remove Gandam from office.

The city says that destroying the original petition ‘goes against’ section 240.92(1) of the MGA.

The city’s communication dept also said that the city will issue a demand letter to the petitioner to hand the signatures over to them.

“Council has directed Administration to ensure that a letter of demand is issued to the petitioner to collect the original copy of the recall petition. Subsequently,” said the city’s communication manager, Kristen Hewlett.

“Council has also directed administration to request that Municipal Affairs decide on the best steps forward due to the extraordinary circumstances of this situation,” Hewlett further said.

Meanwhile, Alberta Municipal Affairs assistant communications director Michael Francoeur told the outlet that the petitioner was still required to return the petition.

“On April 25, 2024, Bill 20, the Municipal Affairs Statutes Amendment Act, 2024, was introduced to make local elections processes more transparent and local elected officials more accountable to the people they represent. This includes proposed MGA amendments to make the Minister of Municipal Affairs responsible for validating municipal recall petitions rather than a municipality’s CAO. A representative petitioner will still be required to return the recall petition (to the Minister) and destroy any copies within two days of the petition declaration.” Francoeur stated.

Hunker, however, lists a series of reasons why she hasn’t submitted the original signature to the city.

“That would keep the list of opposing citizens out of the hands of the parties in power. By allowing the CAO (the boss of all city employees) access to the names, no city employee would sign the petition, business owners that do work for the city wouldn’t sign, people that needed anything from permits to approvals wouldn’t sign, and on and on…" she detailed.