Gazette Vaudreuil-Soulanges
July 2, 2014
As we report this week, three governing board members from a Lester B. Pearson School Board elementary school are calling for an inquiry by the board’s ethics commissioner into alleged conflicts of interest on the part of chairman Suanne Stein Day. It’s their right, it’s an administrative process and we’ll all await the results with interest.
Meanwhile, a political process is underway as school boards prepare for elections this fall. Stein Day is seeking re-election as chairman of the board of commissioners. She is being opposed by Chris Eustace, a former LBPSB teacher and an outspoken critic of both Stein Day and the preceding chairman. The third candidate, Angela Nolet, is the deputy chair, someone whose low profile isn’t indicative of her involvement.
The elephant in the room is the question of whether the allegations against Stein Day are politically motivated. She infers that they are. Eustace, who has been gagged by Stein Day at the past seven months of council meetings, wants her to step down while the allegations are being investigated. Stein Day shows no inclination to do so. We’re big fans of due process. Given the public’s disengagement with the political process, wouldn’t it be best if the candidates agree the conflict-of-interest cloud is off limits until the commissioner has ruled?
