The Mayor of Kamloops is distancing himself from a statement put out by City Councillors last Friday, that offered support to CAO David Trawin and other members of senior management.

In his own statement Tuesday, Reid Hamer-Jackson said he “neither approved nor authorized the release of this document” and that he “assumes it represents the personal views of our elected City Councillors.”

Friday’s statement came on the heels of reporting by Kamloops This Week that detailed some of the findings of a third-party investigation into workplace strife at City Hall.

The existence of the third-party investigation was first reported by Radio NL in June.

It found that Hamer-Jackson breached council’s code of conduct, and that he is no longer allowed to meet with CAO Trawin and three other unidentified city staffers without the presence of an approved third party.

Kamloops Councillor Mike O’Reilly told Radio NL there was a reason why the statement from councillors publicly named David Trawin.

“His name was mentioned in the story that ran in KTW, so felt it was right to make sure that we pointed out that we singled out his name,” O’Reilly said. “But also, its all of our senior management. We have full confidence and full support of the team that we have in place.”

That council statement also went on to say that despite the perceived internal strife at City Hall, the business of the city is moving forward, listing the new Council Strategic Plan, the Build Kamloops Initiative, and the establishment of the Kamloops Community Land Trust Foundation as examples.

In further decrying that council statement, Hamer-Jackson went on to say that it referenced reporting that “revealed information, documents, and the partial contents of a report” that was received in a closed meeting of council on June 13.

“The unauthorized, selective release of confidential information from a closed meeting, that I believe to be a serious legal matter,” Hamer-Jackson said. “It also violates the obligation of all members of the City Council to conduct the business of the city in a transparent, accountable, and respectful manner.”

“I would prefer to deal with damaging allegations and statements in a court of law, or before a legally constituted tribunal, where due process is followed, and the rule of law is respected.”

Hamer-Jackson also said Tuesday that he will comment further on the results of the workplace investigation if it is released in its entirety.

“I am advised that local media outlets received the confidential information that they published under terms of secrecy, and therefore precluded from releasing the report to me or to the public,” he said. “If and when City Council authorizes the release of the full contents of the “Investigation” and report, I will comment further.”

“Until then, I will be working hard to achieve the goals that we focused on during the election.”