Mayor Rob Ford is vowing to take legal action in an effort to reverse a pair of overwhelming decisions by city council to strip him of some of his powers for the rest of the current four-year term.
Ford made the threat during a debate Friday but it didn’t deter a majority of council members, who voted 39-3 to take away his ability to appoint and dismiss deputy mayor Norm Kelly and standing committee chairs, and 41-2 to transfer the mayor's powers in an emergency situation, should one arise, to the deputy mayor. Ford still has the statutory right to declare an emergency.
A third vote on Monday is poised to take even more powers away from the mayor.
Before Friday's first vote, a subdued Ford informed council of his intent to take the matter to the courts if they passed the motions.
"I have no other options but to challenge this in court," Ford said calmly during one of two special meetings. "If people were in my shoes, anyone would do what I have to do."
A legal fight would take months to resolve and it would force the city to waste taxpayer money, warned Ford, who has retained municipal lawyer George Rust-D’Eye.
“I don’t want to see the taxpayers hurt through this process and this will hurt the taxpayers at the end of the day,” Ford said.
He warned the vote to strip him of his appointment powers would set a dangerous precedent for future council members.
“If we move ahead with this then obviously if someone else steps out of line like I have it’s going to affect councillors and the mayor, I think, for years to come,” Ford said.
Coun. Doug Ford came to his brother's defence, telling councillors they lacked the legal or moral authority to limit his brother's powers.
He accused councillors of setting a double standard by taking action against his scandal-plagued brother, who has not been charged with a crime, and overlooking some council members’ earlier transgressions.
“This isn’t about you. This is about the people. Remember that,” Doug Ford said.
The Ford brothers voted against both motions. Coun. David Shiner was the third council member who opposed the appointment powers motion.
No grounds for legal action, councillor suggests
Coun. John Filion, who sponsored the motion to strip Ford of his appointment powers, said he is not worried about Ford's threat of legal action.
“We have the authority to do everything we did,” Filion said.
Filion said the rare measures were done “reluctantly” and “sadly” but he believes they were warranted in such a “chaotic” situation.
“If there’s a silver lining in this sad situation it’s that this issue has united members of council like they haven’t been united certainly for the period of this term of office,” Filion told reporters.
Before the first vote, councillors posed questions to city solicitor Anna Kinastowski about the legality of removing Ford’s powers and the ramifications of a court challenge.
Kinastowski reminded members they do not have the power to oust Ford or take away his statutory duties, but told them they can take away duties delegated by council. She called it a precedent-setting situation.
In a letter to council members, Rust-D’Eye gave his legal opinion on the grounds for court action.
Rust-D’Eye said council has a responsibility to act on the basis of facts - not speculation or extraneous or irrelevant allegations - and there is no evidence before council suggesting the mayor has failed to exercise or abused his powers or been unwilling or unable to fulfill them.
He said the motions propose changes to city governance that could be seen as an attempt to punish the mayor for alleged personal misconduct or as a symbolic intent to do something in response to it.
Third vote to take place Monday
Council is voting Monday on a motion that would take even more powers away from an embattled mayor who refuses to resign or take a leave of absence during a growing drug and alcohol scandal.
Ford’s critics are unable to boot him from office or force him to take a leave, and they are going to extraordinary lengths to restrict his influence on city business.
If all three motions pass, Ford would be Toronto’s mayor in name only. The main governance of the city would pass to council and Kelly.
“There’s never been a moment like this in Toronto’s history,” Coun. Gord Perks told CP24 reporter Jackie Crandles. “The good news is we’re doing this within the law and with good respect (to Torontonians).”
Monday’s motion, if approved, would provide the biggest blow. At that meeting, council will be asked to relieve Ford of his council-delegated mayoral powers, transfer them to Kelly, and replace the mayor with Kelly as chair of the executive committee.
If the motion passes, Ford would be prevented from sitting on city hall committees and council would scale back his office’s budget to that of a councillor's budget and transfer the remaining sum to the city clerk’s office.
Ford’s staff would be given the option of working for Kelly, who has called on Ford to step aside to deal with his issues. Ford says he is receiving support from a team of health-care professionals, but he declined to elaborate on the nature of the help he is receiving.
Ford’s opponents say they are attempting to stabilize the situation at city hall amid a scandal that they say is obstructing city business and tarnishing Toronto’s reputation.
Kids playing 'cops and Rob Ford'
Some councillors have also expressed concerns that the scandal is affecting impressionable young children who haven't been shielded from the coverage and don't fully understand the allegations.
Coun. Sarah Doucette said a concerned parent told her young children at one school are playing a playground game of “cops and Rob Ford,” a take on the traditional game of “cops and robbers.”
The object of the game, according to the kids? Chase Rob Ford “because he’s drinking crack,” a parent told Doucette.
"The tides are changing. Residents are now upset because this is what our children are seeing," Doucette told CP24 reporter Katie Simpson.
@ChrisKitching is on Twitter. For instant breaking news, follow @CP24 on Twitter.
