Quebec City Mayor Bruno Marchand says some whistleblowers “should look in the mirror” in the wake of allegations that a toxic climate reigns at Quebec City Hall. He reiterated Thursday that the working atmosphere is a matter for all parties, when the city’s general manager, Luc Monty, convened the four groups represented on the municipal council “to take stock.”
An altercation which occurred between two elected officials on February 6 on the sidelines of a council meeting continues to cause ink to flow in the capital. An opposition councilor, Stevens Mélançon, recounted Thursday how an elected official from the mayor’s team allegedly challenged him in the corridors of the town hall to the point of punching him in the chest.
“If we tolerate this, what’s the next step? Where are we going? There, it’s a blow chest. Next time, what will it be, a punch? » denounced the elected official of the Chute-Montmorency–Seigneurial district.
The day before, an advisor from another opposition party, Alicia Despins, affirmed that the episode constituted “the straw that broke the camel’s back” following a series of situations of “violence, aggressiveness, harassment” mentioned by her and her leader, Claude Villeneuve, both members of the official opposition. The elected official filed a complaint with the Quebec Municipal Commission to denounce the alleged inaction of Clément Laberge, the chief of staff of Mayor Bruno Marchand, following several reports.
Mayor Bruno Marchand did not want to comment on the complaint Thursday. “We will collaborate, but we will not make any further comments. This file is under analysis,” he indicated. However, he did not mince his words about the altercation between a member of his team and Stevens Mélançon. “I think those who accuse should look in the mirror,” he said.
The quarrel allegedly originated from publications by Mr. Mélançon on the Facebook profile of a Quebec City councilor, herself a former spouse of the other elected official involved in the skirmish. “What was done, for me, is unacceptable,” insisted the mayor about these comments on social networks. In relation to the chest attack allegedly launched by his advisor, he “judges that there is no reason to go further”. “I wasn’t there, I can’t tell you if there was contact or not, I haven’t seen the videotapes, so it’s not my place to deal with that. »
The city’s general manager, Luc Monty, decided to jump into the fray to try to calm things down. He called a meeting Thursday afternoon to “take stock of safety and the work climate within the teams politicians at city hall” with all parties.
At the end of the meeting, the mayor’s team delivered a short report. “Each party certainly had its recriminations, but also its share of behavior to improve,” she wrote to journalists. “We all have a role to play to ensure that relationships and exchanges remain healthy and courteous. […] We take the situation seriously and sincerely hope that everything is resolved quickly. »
The general director also undertakes to offer “in the coming weeks” training to elected officials to “remind them of the concepts” which govern their role under the code of ethics and professional conduct governing council members adopted in 2022. His second article states that elected officials must “respect and civility toward council members, city employees and citizens. »