MNBC Fails to Post Board Meeting Minutes since April

(October 15, 2022) The Métis Nation British Columbia (MNBC) Board of Directors has held some 22 internal meetings since the end of April of this year, including 7 formal Board meetings, but not a single set of minutes has been posted. Minutes are required to be kept of all formal Board meetings as the official record of decisions made, and the practice that has been followed up to April has been the posting of the minutes on the MNBC website for the information of all MNBC Citizens. The last minutes posted were from April 28th.

Minutes are the official record of meetings showing who attended and what was discussed such as decisions made including approval of service contracts, purchase of land, and other major financial decisions, new or amended policies, signing authorities for bank accounts and agreements, and updates on outstanding issues. The minutes are an essential part of democracy and transparency and MNBC Citizens have a right to know what decisions the Board is making.

So why haven’t the minutes been posted in five months? Some members of the current Board, when seeking elected office talked about the importance of transparency and accountability but have shown little evidence of that commitment. Even the posting of monthly reports from most Board members has been inconsistent, and what about the posting of travel expenses and Board remuneration on more than a once a year basis? It doesn’t occur.

The former President of MNBC Clara Morin Dal Col said, “This Board has held some 22 internal meetings since April but yet can’t find the time to post any minutes, and what’s with the so-called informal meetings? MNBC Citizens have a right to know what was discussed and what decisions were made.”

She said, “This non-profit organization is making decisions all the time on where to spend millions of dollars and what policies are being implemented, but yet not providing the record of those decisions in a timely fashion. This group needs to remember they are accountable to the Citizens.”

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For further information:

Contact Clara Morin Dal Col

BC Métis Leader

Email: cmdalcol@gmail.com