Kamloops mayor hopes committee appointments will still volunteer after review

KAMLOOPS — On Friday (March 24) evening, Kamloops mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson sent a letter to council and staff, advising them that he was rescinding his appointments to the standing committees. The move comes after council voted to suspend the standing committees in the city pending a review of the terms of reference by three members of council including the mayor.

Hamer-Jackson stated that the nine appointees had been subject to abuse in the wake of the announcement last week. He felt his opponents looked only at the fact that they were appointment by himself and not at their qualifications to help the city of Kamloops.

“The people are being called drinking buddies and that kind of stuff. I just wish that people would have looked at them in a different way. They are volunteering their time, and they are very capable and a lot of good credentials. I don’t want them to continue getting phone calls about stuff that is just not necessary,” said Hamer-Jackson.

The mayor added that he hopes to create more select committees moving forward as well to get even more public representation on the topics that matter most to residents.