Proposed Resolution would allow for Election Rules to be changed after an Election is called

(September 16, 2023) A proposed resolution at the upcoming Métis Nation British Columbia (MNBC) Annual General Meeting runs contrary to one of the fundamentals of holding free and fair elections. The resolution is called “Regulatory Authority for Elections” and if approved would allow for new rules or existing election rules to be amended by the Métis Nation Governing Assembly (MNGA) after an election has been called.

It would work like this - the election has been called, and all of a sudden new rules can be made or existing rules amended as the election process unfolds. And given that all of the current Board directors sit on the MNGA and if they are all candidates in the next election, you would have the absurd and unbelievable situation of the incumbent Board members voting on new rules or amendments to the existing election rules for an election they are running in.

This resolution should never have seen the light of day. To be able to change the rules or add new rules once an election has been called is totally wrong and contrary to holding free and fair elections. It would be like the Parliament of Canada or the BC Legislature changing the election rules once an election has been called. It would not happen and it does not happen in a democracy. It might happen in Russia or some other country under an authoritarian regime, but it is not permitted to happen in a democracy.

BC Métis Leader and former MNBC President Clara Morin Dal Col said, “I have never seen such a resolution as this that would permit the rules governing an election to be changed or added to once an election has been called and it is even more offensive to allow incumbent candidates to be part of the decision making process.”

Ms. Morin Dal Col, who has announced that she will be seeking the MNBC Presidency in the 2024 election said, “This resolution needs to be defeated at the upcoming AGM. The MNGA should not be allowed to change the rules after an election has been called.”

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For further information:

Contact Clara Morin Dal Col

Candidate for MNBC Presidency

Email: cmdalcol@gmail.com