Unelected, Unchecked, and Unaccountable: The Rise of the CAO in Pickering

Unelected, Unchecked, and Unaccountable: The Rise of the CAO in Pickering By Councillor Lisa Robinson In any democratic system, elected officials are chosen by the people to represent their voice, advocate for their interests, and provide oversight of public administration. In contrast, a Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) is an unelected civil servant - the head of municipal administration - hired to carry out policy, manage operations, and support the implementation of council decisions. They are not supposed to be the face of political leadership. They are not supposed to hold power over elected Councillors. Yet in Pickering, that’s exactly what’s happening. The City of Pickering’s CAO, an employee - not an elected representative - has emerged as one of the most visible, vocal, and politically influential figures at City Hall. She routinely attends events and photo-ops as if she were a member of council, appearing in media announcements and staging herself as a public figure, despite holding no mandate from the people. Now, with renovations underway in council chambers, we’ve learned the CAO will sit in the centre of the new dais with the Mayor and City Clerk - a place traditionally reserved for elected officials - while actual councillors are pushed to the sidelines. This is not symbolism. This is a loud and clear message: power is no longer held by the people’s representatives; it is centralized under one unelected bureaucrat. The CAO’s control extends far beyond optics. Councillors are now being told they must ask permission to bring forward motions. Communications with City staff - whether directors or lower-level employees - are restricted. I cannot have a basic conversation with City staff without her being notified. This creates a climate of fear and manipulation, where honest governance is obstructed and transparency is avoided. It is now impossible to conduct a neutral, independent investigation involving the CAO, because she oversees the very staff who would be involved in such an inquiry. She controls internal communications, manages the optics, and maintains influence over all internal administrative processes. In essence, the CAO is both the subject of the complaint and the gatekeeper of the investigation - a textbook conflict of interest. Let’s be honest: the majority of complaints against me have come directly from the Mayor and the CAO. And it’s no coincidence. I’ve made my position very clear - if I were Mayor and had access to strong mayor powers, I would use them to clean house. I would get rid of the CAO, the City Solicitor, and several Directors because I believe corruption starts at the top. I’ve said openly that I would tear it down, build it back up, and give the City back to the people. This isn’t just politics - it’s personal for them. Over $250,000.00 a year personal for the CAO. And that’s why we’re seeing retaliation disguised as integrity enforcement. Their vendetta is thinly veiled behind “code of conduct” complaints, most of which are nothing more than attempts to silence, shame, and discredit a dissenting voice on council. The CAO’s unchecked authority is eroding the democratic structure of municipal governance. Instead of being accountable to elected council, the CAO is manipulating council to be accountable to her. She shapes the agenda. She filters information. She positions herself as the gatekeeper between councillors and the rest of the corporation. This isn’t how local government is supposed to function. This isn’t public service - this is administrative authoritarianism. The bottom line is the people of Pickering didn’t elect the CAO. They elected a council to serve them - to be their voice, to ask hard questions, and to hold staff accountable. But that’s impossible when the person running the show controls the flow of information, suppresses dialogue, and uses her position to silence opposition. It’s time we asked the hard question: Who really runs Pickering? The councillors we elected - or the CAO we didn’t? Because if the answer is the latter, then we no longer have a representative democracy - we have a bureaucracy on a power trip. And the people deserve far better than that. I am Councillor Lisa Robinson, “The People’s Council” Strength Does Not Lie In The Absence Of Fear But In The Courage To Face It Head On and Rise Above It