Bob Gale is unfit for the role

Honestly, the title could stand by itself and be the end of this blog entry, but let me explain anyway.

For those of you following this issue, you will know that – less than one week ago – Council passed the following resolution after Bob Gale took it upon himself (or so he tells us, except for the two times he’s slipped up and then denied saying what he just said) to send letters to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing and to the mayors of Niagara’s 12 local area municipalities indicating that he was seriously contemplating governance reform and amalgamation into either a one-city or a four-city model:

I would like to draw your attention, especially, to:

That Regional Council DIRECTS Chair Gale to refrain from any further action and utilization of any further Regional resources or staff time, with the exception of the above, in connection with a review of Regional governance or municipal amalgamation.

Before we voted on the motion, and because he does not understand process or his role, Bob Gale asked our Director of Legal Services if this part of the motion was “legal.” She advised that, yes, Council often acts in this manner and directs the Chair.

Further, when reached by the CBC about the motion, Bob Gale’s Chief of Staff said they were “unable to discuss” the issue:

“When CBC News asked for details on how the governance review will be conducted and who will be involved, Niagara Region’s chief of staff Nick Colosimo said, in an email to CBC, they are “unable to discuss” the details due to the motion.”

And then, today, upon arriving home from a 12-hour day of work, I found the following in the inbox of my Regional e-mail:

I’ll get into the details of the letter in future blog entries; however, let me make this crystal clear.
I want there to be not a single doubt for anyone reading this.

Bob Gale and his staff acted in direct contravention of Council’s motion of Thursday, February 26, 2026. While the minutes of that Committee of the Whole meeting have not yet been officially ratified by Council, the intent was abundantly clear, and Bob Gale has only demonstrated his utter lack of respect for Council and that he is entirely unfit for the role of Chair.

This is what you get when you appoint a charter member of the 2014-2018 cabal as Chair.