Fear-Mongering, Control, and Public Mischief: Pickering’s Leadership is Undermining Democracy

Fear-Mongering, Control, and Public Mischief: Pickering’s Leadership is Undermining Democracy The City of Pickering’s decision to move council meetings online under the pretense of safety is nothing more than a calculated, cynical effort to stifle dissent, manipulate public perception, and consolidate power. Let’s be clear: this isn’t about safety—it’s about control. The over-the-top deployment of police officers at council meetings, combined with the laughable propaganda video released weeks ago, makes it abundantly clear: they’re fabricating fear to justify authoritarian measures and silence the growing voices of discontent among the residents. If there were truly credible threats, would the mayor and staff invite their families—wives, children, even eight-year-old grandchildren—to council meetings? Would councillors freely attend ribbon-cuttings and photo ops without so much as a police officer in sight? Or how about our New Year’s Eve celebrations or the Mayor’s Levee with hundreds of attendees and maybe a single police officer? Would my female colleague casually ride a scooter alone in public? These actions completely betray their claims of danger and expose this shift to virtual meetings for what it truly is: a pretext to shut down public engagement, not to protect anyone. We’re being fed the tired, old excuse that public officials are somehow in danger—a pathetic, overused refrain designed to justify controlling measures. But let’s be real: politicians in public service always face threats, insults, and sometimes worse. It’s part of the job. If they can’t handle it, then they should get out of public office. The mayor, council, and staff are far more concerned with avoiding accountability than actually serving the people. They’re more interested in playing with their phones, rolling their eyes, flailing their arms in the air or trying to storm out of meetings when things don’t go their way. Watch how they look visibly irritated, acting like spoiled children when they’re asked to do their job. The mayor can’t even resist watching sporting events during council sessions. And let’s not forget how they race through a consent agenda, proudly declaring "democracy quick tonight," with no debate, no questions, and no input from the public. They’ve turned council meetings into a joke. They’re timing themselves to see who can wrap things up the fastest. Who can shut down debate the quickest? Who can call for a consent agenda with the least amount of thought? This isn’t leadership; it’s a mockery of the democratic process. They have no respect for the people they serve or the issues that matter to this community. It’s all about convenience for them. This is not leadership. This is public mischief. The mayor and council have made it crystal clear: they don’t want to do their job. They don’t want to be held accountable. They’d rather be on vacation, glued to their devices, or anywhere but engaging with the public and doing what they were elected to do. They’ve taken my pay as punishment for standing up for you, the people. But they can’t take your pay, so they’ve chosen to take away your voice. By refusing to provide you with an arena to be heard—by shutting down in-person participation—they’ve stolen another vital right from you. They’ve already silenced you with their absurd policies and procedures that restrict your ability to speak and record. And now, they’ve gone even further. You won’t even be able to attend meetings, raise your concerns face-to-face, and hold your elected officials accountable. Instead, they’ll simply mute your microphone or cut the connection when they don’t like what you have to say. This is an attack on democracy, plain and simple. It’s an attack on your right to be heard. In the weeks leading up to the Mayor and staff’s decision to push for virtual meetings, they called for the deployment of two, then four, paid-duty officers at our council meetings. And as if that wasn’t enough, Durham Regional Police sent an additional ten officers—just out of the “goodness of their hearts.” This is an outrageous waste of taxpayer dollars and a calculated attempt to manufacture fear. While our streets are being overrun with rising crime—carjackings, human trafficking, gun violence—police officers are being pulled away from real emergencies to babysit peaceful meetings of fewer than 30 people. There has been no history of violence in our council chambers during my entire tenure. This isn’t about safety. It’s about creating a façade of fear to intimidate residents and shut them out of the conversation. It’s an abuse of power and resources, plain and simple. What makes this even more egregious is the fact that the city had already planned to move meetings online this late spring or perhaps early summer due to council chamber renovations. So, instead of relocating to an accessible venue—like a recreation center—to ensure continued in-person public engagement, they seized this opportunity to shut the public out entirely. By hiding behind manufactured fear, they’ve bypassed their responsibility to engage with the public face-to-face. Why spend millions renovating chambers when they no longer intend to use them for public participation? Even more telling, they’ve announced no events will be held there except weddings. See the pattern here? The decision to go virtual under the guise of "fear" is nothing more than a strategic move to stop the inevitable pushback and anger they knew would erupt once the renovations started. Instead of relocating to a more accessible venue to ensure continued public engagement, they used fear as a cover to shut down opposition. There was—and still is—absolutely no legitimate reason to go virtual. This isn’t about safety; it’s about avoiding accountability and silencing the public's voice. The timing is no coincidence. Public frustration with council’s decisions has been mounting, and residents have been showing up to voice their concerns. This shift to virtual meetings conveniently ensures fewer residents can hold their leaders accountable, while council continues to push their narrative uninterrupted. To make matters worse, rumors are circulating that other municipalities and levels of government, inspired by the ease with which Pickering has silenced dissent, may follow suit. Imagine the vacations our councillors could take while attending meetings from the comfort of a beach chair, all while avoiding accountability and criticism. And let’s not forget the bigger agenda at play. The council’s manufactured fear aligns perfectly with their push to change the Municipal Act, giving themselves the power to remove elected officials who don’t fall in line. By smearing critics as extremists or conspiracy theorists, they’re laying the groundwork for a system where disagreement is punished and democracy is replaced with dictatorship. This isn’t leadership—it’s authoritarianism, disguised as governance. Pickering’s residents deserve better—much, much better. We deserve leaders who show up to work, who actually listen to us, and who are willing to be held accountable. We deserve leaders who prioritize fixing our crumbling infrastructure over wasting millions on unnecessary renovations. If you haven’t taken a good look at the schematics for your shiny new council chambers, I strongly suggest you do so. You’ll be shocked to see that staff have pushed through a design that looks more like a courtroom than a place where your voice should be heard. The focus will now be on the Mayor and two unelected bureaucrats—the CAO and the City Clerk—staring down at you. So, ask yourself: who’s really running the show at the Corporation of the City of Pickering? You will no longer be able to look your elected representatives in the eye—the very people you voted for to be your voice in the chamber. This isn’t democracy, folks. It’s a mockery of it. Pickering deserves leaders who value transparency and public engagement over propaganda, fear-mongering, and control. The people of Pickering are speaking up because they are tired of being silenced. It’s time for our leaders to start listening instead of hiding behind virtual screens, excessive police presence, and manufactured fear. Democracy doesn’t thrive on control and censorship—it thrives on debate, dissent, and accountability. This farce must end. I am Councillor Lisa Robinson, The People’s Councillor