Former Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi said Coun. Sean Chu should step down for taking a photo of Mayor Jyoti Gondek’s licence plate, which was shared online. .“So I always suggested the voters are always right, but now I am going to say in this case the voters were wrong,” said Nenshi in a Friday interview on Calgary Eyeopener with Angela Knight on CBC. .“He needs to resign.” .Gondek said Tuesday working with Chu jeopardized her safety after he took a photo of her vehicle licence plate. .READ MORE: Gondek blasts Chu for taking photo of her licence plate.“I am not comfortable liaising with Coun. Chu’s office or entrusting him with the responsibilities of deputy mayor,” she said. .Chu ended up resigning from his position as deputy mayor. He apologized to Gondek, but she declined it. .Nenshi said he has been careful about not commenting on Calgary city council in the past year because he wants to give councillors the space to do their work. He said part of that is because he has great respect for the electorate. .The former mayor went on to say he has been reflecting on complicity and has been thinking about his own. He called Chu “a terrible councillor.” .He said he cannot think of a single motion he sponsored in the past eight years. Any hard work in the city councillior’s word had to be done by him. .Nenshi said Chu apologized to multiple city staff for being rude and offensive to them. Almost all of those staff were females. .Former Calgary city councillor and mayoral candidate Jeromy Farkas said Chu photographing Gondek’s licence plate “continues the dangerous pattern of behavior unfit for city council, yet alone any possession of authority.” .“If anyone out there, especially conservatives, are willing to turn a blind eye to this and what happened to the mayor just because you dislike her politics, I think you need to get your head checked,” said Farkas. .“It’s very clear this councillor’s position is untenable.” .He said Chu cannot carry out the work Calgarians are demanding from him. He added the Alberta government needs to remove Chu or be complicit enablers. .Nenshi said the person who should be looking into removing Chu is Alberta Municipal Affairs Minister Rebecca Schulz. Former Alberta municipal affairs minister Ric McIver had a law firm investigate and determine he did not have the authority to remove Chu from Calgary city council for past events. .According to Nenshi, McIver had the law firm look at the wrong question. What people know is Chu mislead voters while a city councillor about his sexual assault allegations and harmed Gondek. .Chu said in 2021 he had no intention of resigning as a city councillor, but he apologized to the woman who had the sexual encounter with in 1997. .READ MORE: EXCLUSIVE: Chu vows not to resign, apologizes and speaks out on allegations.Chu was re-elected by 52 votes after the sexual assault allegations resurfaced one week prior to election day. .“This was nothing but a political assassination,” he said..Nenshi said Schulz has the ability to do an investigation on the two incidents. .“If he doesn’t do the right thing and show some humanity and step down, then she has to remove him,” he said.
Former Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi said Coun. Sean Chu should step down for taking a photo of Mayor Jyoti Gondek’s licence plate, which was shared online. .“So I always suggested the voters are always right, but now I am going to say in this case the voters were wrong,” said Nenshi in a Friday interview on Calgary Eyeopener with Angela Knight on CBC. .“He needs to resign.” .Gondek said Tuesday working with Chu jeopardized her safety after he took a photo of her vehicle licence plate. .READ MORE: Gondek blasts Chu for taking photo of her licence plate.“I am not comfortable liaising with Coun. Chu’s office or entrusting him with the responsibilities of deputy mayor,” she said. .Chu ended up resigning from his position as deputy mayor. He apologized to Gondek, but she declined it. .Nenshi said he has been careful about not commenting on Calgary city council in the past year because he wants to give councillors the space to do their work. He said part of that is because he has great respect for the electorate. .The former mayor went on to say he has been reflecting on complicity and has been thinking about his own. He called Chu “a terrible councillor.” .He said he cannot think of a single motion he sponsored in the past eight years. Any hard work in the city councillior’s word had to be done by him. .Nenshi said Chu apologized to multiple city staff for being rude and offensive to them. Almost all of those staff were females. .Former Calgary city councillor and mayoral candidate Jeromy Farkas said Chu photographing Gondek’s licence plate “continues the dangerous pattern of behavior unfit for city council, yet alone any possession of authority.” .“If anyone out there, especially conservatives, are willing to turn a blind eye to this and what happened to the mayor just because you dislike her politics, I think you need to get your head checked,” said Farkas. .“It’s very clear this councillor’s position is untenable.” .He said Chu cannot carry out the work Calgarians are demanding from him. He added the Alberta government needs to remove Chu or be complicit enablers. .Nenshi said the person who should be looking into removing Chu is Alberta Municipal Affairs Minister Rebecca Schulz. Former Alberta municipal affairs minister Ric McIver had a law firm investigate and determine he did not have the authority to remove Chu from Calgary city council for past events. .According to Nenshi, McIver had the law firm look at the wrong question. What people know is Chu mislead voters while a city councillor about his sexual assault allegations and harmed Gondek. .Chu said in 2021 he had no intention of resigning as a city councillor, but he apologized to the woman who had the sexual encounter with in 1997. .READ MORE: EXCLUSIVE: Chu vows not to resign, apologizes and speaks out on allegations.Chu was re-elected by 52 votes after the sexual assault allegations resurfaced one week prior to election day. .“This was nothing but a political assassination,” he said..Nenshi said Schulz has the ability to do an investigation on the two incidents. .“If he doesn’t do the right thing and show some humanity and step down, then she has to remove him,” he said.
