The Inquiry Begins
Ron Bolin: Feb. 8, 2015
Following up on the two previous posts which deal with my request for an investigation into the redaction of public records by the City: “How Public are Public Records” (posted on August 4, 2014) https://nanaimocityhall.com/2014/08/04/how-public-are-public-records/ and “Response from the OIPCBC” (dated Nov. 9, 2014), https://nanaimocityhall.com/2014/12/09/response-from-the-oipcbc/ , we now move on the Inquiry stage of the process, i.e. the question has been found to be of sufficient merit to proceed to adjudication.
A letter from the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner’s office dated Jan 22, 2015, notified me of the status of my request: FIPPA Al Boyd letter Jan 22 2015002 , while an email of Feb. 6, 2015 gives notice that mediation attempts have ended and the matter is proceeding to the Inquiry stage: FIPPA Review moving to Inquiry Feb 6 2015001 .
Note that the email regarding the Review Moving to Inquiry is addressed only to myself and to Carolyn MacEachern, a lawyer at the Young Anderson legal firm, currently contracted as City Solicitors. No one in the City administration proper is addressed. It appears that I thus find myself not only performing the task of information seeker who is not to be accorded the courtesy of any response from either our elected or hired Staff and, to add injury to insult, will be taxed, as will all my fellow taxpayers, to pay for my opposition in this matter. How much tax money has the City already spent on this issue? How much is it prepared to spend? Is the request that public records not be redacted so dangerous to current City procedures? Given the circumstances of this issue, I find it hard to understand the City’s position.
I’d be interested in your observations about the circumstances surrounding this relict of the Leadercast event which at one time was said to be slated for a full investigation, but about which nothing has been discussed since the recent election.
If you would like more information about the Office of the Information and Privacy Commission and its work, see:
https://www.oipc.bc.ca/ and https://www.oipc.bc.ca/tools-guidance/guidance-documents/
Posts and Comments on Nanaimo Governance 
Leadercast was a none event other than to those of a particular religious political bent who chose to make hay whilst the sun ( no pun intended) shines.
The Sun has set ! in more ways than one.
Just as the sun sets it also rises ; lets look forward to a more ‘enlightened’ day.
Our problems are not Leadercast but secrecy within Government at all levels.
There are issues that should not be public but the self interest of officialdom & private interest seem to trump the better good of the taxpayer.
The Leadercast fiasco was not, despite Ezra Levant’s efforts to make it one, an issue of religion. It was an issue of conscience and of the power of municipal officials to unilaterally make decisions in this area for their citizens. This is not an issue which can be forgotten lest we find ourselves mired in similar quagmires in the future. For this reason the anatomy of this debacle which brought shame to Nanaimo is important.
Problems with the power of municipalities was, and is, an issue long before leadercast.
It took those with religious convictions to make it an issue, for better or worse.
The sad part of the uproar was that it was the self interest of a section of our community that felt personal hurt!
The same community that roared so loud is , and likely will remain silent on issues with no religious issues.