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Non-confidence issue freezes PIB meeting

A motion was put forward during the emotional meeting to deal with a non-confidence matter
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A bit of turmoil is brewing in the Penticton Indian Band, with a motion at a Wednesday night meeting calling for a non-confidence motion to be addressed.

Wednesday night’s meeting was called to nominate replacements for three band councillors, who have resigned over the past few months for various reasons, according to PIB communications co-ordinator Dawn Russell.

Naomi Gabriel resigned because she found herself unable to keep up with council work while also running Old Order Distilling, Russell said. She added that Denise Lecoy, who also resigned this year, is a graduate student who takes on health contracts with the First Nations Health Authority.

But during the emotional Wednesday night meeting, a group reportedly put forward a motion to close the meeting “until the issue of non-confidence has been addressed,” Russell said.

“The band administration and chief and council take the concerns of the community very seriously and have open platforms for community to bring forward those concerns.”

Related: Former PIB chief to run for council

Because emotions ran high in the meeting, it was shut down for the night, but Russell said band administration and chief and council are still trying to determine on what grounds the group is calling for a non-confidence vote.

Russell said she hopes to have a full statement on the issue later on Thursday.

Chief Chad Eneas was elected as a first-time chief last October, defeating two-term chief Jonathan Kruger, who went on to get a spot in council in its December election.

The results of those elections was the subject of a subsequent recount, but the results of that didn’t change the outcome.

Related: PIB vote recount doesn’t affect results