The ongoing issues involving the City of 麻豆传媒映画integrity commissioner and city council, led by Mayor Ken Sim, have prompted 麻豆传媒映画School Board (VSB) chair Victoria Jung to resign from Sim's ABC party.
ABC swept to power in local elections in 2022 with every one of its candidates winning their seat on city council and the parks and school boards. Jung was the top vote-getter at the VSB and became the organization's chair.
Now, two years later she's remaining as the board chair, but leaving ABC.
"Recent events questioning the officer of the 麻豆传媒映画Integrity Commissioner have given me pause to reflect on my core values," wrote Jung in a post on Twitter/X on Aug. 7, 2024.
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— Victoria Jung (@victoriajungvan)
The mayor called a special single-issue meeting for August 6 before council goes on a month-long summer hiatus. The meeting was essentially to vote on a suspension of the Integrity Commissioner’s Office while a third party reviewed the office's mandate.
Councillor Pete Fry files complaint naming council members
However, Sim asked for the vote to be delayed until Sept. 25, citing an email he, council, and senior staff received from Coun. Pete Fry the day before. The email referenced a complaint Fry had filed with the Integrity Commissionner's Office; that office had not yet notified those named in the complaint, however, Sim indicated those potentially named were himself and multiple councillors.
Sim went on to say Fry's actions broke confidentiality protocol.
"Given Coun. Fry's actions that clearly violate the currently defined process, I have no choice but to recommend a recess for this meeting out of an abundance of caution," said Sim.
After the meeting, Coun. Christine Boyle, who's part of OneCity, said on Twitter/X the recess was "good news."
"The Mayor’s speech about 'political theatre' was baloney," . "The Integrity Commissioner’s work will continue for at least another 1.5 months."
The three council members not part of ABC (Boyle, Fry and Adriane Carr) did not attend the meeting.
VSB chair to remain independent school trustee
Jung's statement explains she is resigning as a member of ABC but remains an independent school trustee.
"While differences do indeed come and go for elected officials, the imperative to serve in the public interest — versus private interest —is one that is non-negotiable," stated Jung.
Jung isn't the first person to leave ABC while in power; the party, which was founded in 2021, dropped Christopher Richardson from its VSB slate just before the election due to his involvement with a failed charity. However, Richardson was still listed on the ballot as a member of ABC; he was elected and sits on the board as an independent.
More recently, after Sim announced late last year plans to abolish the parks board, members of that board who were and opposed that plan were "removed from ABC." Commissioners Brennan Bastyovanszky, Laura Christensen, and Scott Jensen all sit as independents now, with Bastyovanszky acting as chair of the board and Jensen as vice-chair.
