'Wake-up call': Mayor, councilors respond to petition to take back Calgary

Landon Johnston, if you asked him Monday if he thought Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek could be recalled, he would have said no.

Johnston filed a recall petition last month, and the City of Calgary confirmed Monday that they had received the recall petition. According to the new provisions in the Law on Municipal Governance, any citizen can petition for the recall of an elected official by applying the Law on Elections of Local Authorities.

The applicant's burden is considerable. An applicant needs 40 percent of Calgary's total population – which means Johnston needs 514,000+ ID signatures.

“If you asked me yesterday morning, no, there's no way, his position would be safe with this petition,” she said when she opened her inbox this morning, noting that she had more than 10,000 emails.

“But the amount of support I've gotten here in the last day, it's becoming increasingly clear that there's a bigger voice in Calgary than just opposition to this petition.”

Johnston, who owns Calgary-based Arctic HVAC, said no one pushed him to do it. He was inspired by the legislation itself and its reference to empowering citizens who believe elected officials are failing in their duties.

“I read that one night and I was like, 'Okay, that's how I feel,'” Johnston told LiveWire Calgary.

It was the culmination of what prompted Johnston to act. He said the mayor did it to himself and had plenty of opportunities to “right the ship.”

“If it was you or me here and our boss sat us down after a big project and we only got 40 percent of that project done, or the other 60 percent of that project wasn't done right, we'd have to make a big adjustment or we'd be fired,” he said.

“It should work for elected politicians as well.”

“Wake Up Call”: Con. Evan Spencer

Mayor Gondek fielded questions from members of the media on the topic during the Council's public hearing session during the lunch break on Tuesday. He admitted that the recall came as a surprise.

“I wouldn't be human if I didn't say, 'You know, it stings a little when you see something like this,'” he says.

The mayor said he is concerned about data collection and protecting the privacy of Calgarians' data, especially if it is used beyond the possibility of recall. However, he said, while there are ways for people to contact councilors and the mayor's office to learn more about why decisions have been made, any feedback on the outcome is food for thought.

“I think everything we do in this role, if you think about the registered public service, it's a moment of reflection,” he said.

“There are times when you have to think about the future of a city and make decisions that are in the best interest of future opportunity and prosperity. There are people who are concerned why you don't do something sooner. So I think the work is complex, the decisions we make are incredibly complex. We are happy to engage with the public at any time and we will continue to focus on that.”

12 districts. Evan Spencer said he's not surprised by the recall petition, given the nature of the political conversation in town right now. He said he was sad but not surprised.

“This should be a wake-up call,” Spencer said.

“I believe the situation this man, this council is in – a certain part of the deck is stacked against us, but we cannot make excuses,” Spencer said.

“We need to respond to Calgarians raising their voices about how this city is being run.”

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Nothing But Theatrical: Con. Chabot

Still, Spencer said he believes there are valid reasons for the City Council's decision, but the direction of the conversation concerns him. That doesn't mean they don't focus on important areas, he said.

“I think we need to figure out how to connect with Calgarians and this council in particular has struggled with that,” Spencer said.

There are significant issues, and although he expects not all solutions will be popular, the recent single-use law has angered Johnston. He says it's a waste of time to undo something they've spent time and money on, not the law itself.

“This law was approved one way or another, and then it was taken back the same way,” Johnston said.

“There are too many problems with spending public money on something that most people don't want and then spending more public money to get rid of it. Now they're even debating re-wording it or whatever. They are out of touch with the rest of the population.”

Johnston said he believes the mayor's role is to bring councilors together on issues and move them forward. He called it a lack of leadership.

The petition may have resonated with some Calgarians, 10th Ward. Andre Chabot said it was little more than political theater. This is because the signature limit cannot be met, he said. He doesn't believe the city council will change its approach to the work that comes in every day.

“I would say there are people who are unhappy with the council, who have been before the council on various issues and who have been involved in policy development,” Chabot said.

“I don't know who this man is or what he has to do with City Hall, but it sounds like theater to me.”

Johnston said he would leave no stone unturned to implement the recall.

“Honestly, I wanted to speak my mind. I wanted my voice to be heard, and I feel that as a person in Calgary, whenever I have a question or it's always a struggle to reach elected politicians,” he said.

“This opportunity was available to all of us. So I think what I'm trying to achieve is that there's an appeal to the common man.”

When asked, the mayor said he would speak with Johnston about some issues related to the city council's decisions.

The applicant has 60 days from the time the city accepts it to collect the necessary signatures. Elections Calgary has a very robust FAQ page with more information on petition requirements.