Montreal Mayor Valrie Plante, left, and Cte-des-NeigesNotre-Dame-de-Grce borough mayor Sue Montgomery at a park plaque dedication ceremony commemorating the Polytechnique massacre on Dec. 5, 2019. John Mahoney / Montreal Gazette
Hours after being kicked out of the Projet Montral caucus on Friday, the embattled borough mayor of Cte-des-NeigesNotre-Dame-de-Grce took to Facebook to engage directly with her citizens.
Sue Montgomery, a former journalist, bypassed the mainstream press and instead relied on social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook to defend her decision not to fire a member of her staff accused of psychological harassment.
And judging from the comments on the popular N.D.G. Living Facebook page, Montgomery was being supported overwhelmingly despite her expulsion by Montreal Mayor Valrie Plante.
Love her or hate her, I think what is obvious is that our mayoress (Montgomery) has principles and is not willing to compromise because she is simply told to, Barbara Sidorowicz, the administrator of the Facebook page, wrote in a post on Friday.
I am appalled by this action, by a party that promised change and to bring Montreal and its government into the 21st century. This is old school politics that has no place anywhere. All the cards need to be laid on the table. I have been disappointed many times by (Projet Montral), but this is really disgraceful behaviour.
Montgomerys expulsion follows an investigation by the citys comptroller general that found employees within her administration had been harassed by a member of her staff. Sources within Projet Montral told the Montreal Gazette the accusations were made against Annalisa Harris, Montgomerys chief of staff.
In her initial statement on Facebook, Montgomery said she couldnt fire the employee because she had not seen the evidence in the comptroller generals report. That report recommended the employees dismissal.
I would be the last person to condone harassment, Montgomery explained. I will also not condone lack of due process. We live in a democracy where people have a right to see evidence against them and to defend themselves. This has not happened and I cannot accept it.
Yet Plantes office accused Montgomery of not following the due process of the investigation by the comptroller general, who enjoys a sterling reputation for thoroughness and impartiality.
Nonetheless, Facebook user Theresa Bianco chose to side with Montgomerys version of events, posting a comment there is something rotten in the state of Denmark an allusion to the Shakespearean tragedy of Hamlet.
That remark prompted Montgomery to reply, you bet there is.
In another exchange with Facebook user Hamza Khan, who wrote I feel theres more to tell yet in this story, Montgomery responded: there is. And it will be told.
Stay tuned, she warned in another post.
Montgomery, who had worked as a reporter for Canadian Press, the Montreal Gazette and as a media relations officer for Amnesty International Canada before running for municipal office in 2017, was not immediately available for comment.
Although Montgomery thanked a number of her supporters, not everyone on Facebook praised her decision.
Its about time for N.D.G. to get a real borough mayor from a real party, posted Jason J. Vietri, not some know-it-all (former) journalist!
twitter.com/Aaron_Derfel
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'Stay tuned,' Montgomery warns on Facebook after expulsion from party - Montreal Gazette
