An Ontario town councillor who participated in the Freedom Convoy protest in Ottawa earlier this year was reprimanded and had his pay suspended by his town council, but the public servant says he’s grateful for having participated the movement.
After receiving the report, West Lincoln council convened the meeting on July 18.
Participated as Trucker, Not Councillor
The report said Jonker had been described as the head of the Niagara Convoy and claimed to have been part of the first group of trucks to reach Parliament Hill on Jan. 28.The lawyers went on to argue that Jonker remained a vocal representative of the protest “after it had been deemed to be unlawful, while at the same time continuing in his role as a member of Council.”
Jonker, also a trucker and the owner of Jonker Trucking Inc., said during the virtual meeting that he did not participate in the protest in his capacity as a councillor.
Mascarin, who was in the same meeting, differed, saying if Jonker is a member of the council, he is a representative “at all times, of the council.”
Responding to the allegations in the complaint, Jonker wrote on May 9: “As a representative I choose to represent the residents who are being negatively affected by the lockdowns and mandates.” The investigation chose to accept that meant he was a representative of the township, which Jonker disagreed with.
“I believe very firmly that [my] going to Ottawa was not in any way, shape, or form as a township of West Lincoln councillor, but as a truck driver and a business owner, and as a father, who has a lot of concerns of where we are going in society today,” he told the council.
Did Not Receive Any Gifts or Benefits
The councillor was also deemed to have broken the section of the code that prohibits the acceptance of gifts or benefits, as the investigation found that, in his comments to Fox News on Feb. 12, Jonker stated that “the Canadian public supported us with hugs, fuel, food.”In addition, the report said the complaint alleged that Jonker “improperly received money and gifts through the GoFundMe and GiveSendGo online fundraisers as a result of his involvement in the rally.”
On June 3, the investigation invited Jonker outline the gifts or benefits he received, but he did not reply, allowing the investigation to find that the councillor did accept the gifts or benefits.
Jonker said he missed the email sent to his township email account, and criticized the investigators for not following up to check whether he received it before accepting that the lack of response was his fault.
“I do apologize for it but there was no intent to hide anything,” he said.
Jonker claimed he did not receive any gifts or benefits as part of his role as a councillor, but rather as a truck driver. He did not personally receive any lodging or fuel, but received coffee, hamburgers, and bacon and eggs.
“If anything, Jonker Trucking, which I own, lost a whole [lot] of money and continues to not function the way it would like,” he said.
At the same time, the councillor expressed concern over quantifying the amount of food he received during the protest, which Mascarin argued he should have kept track of.
“It’s impossible,” Jonker said. “It would be impossible for me to even know how much I received in amount of hamburgers, hot dogs, bacon and eggs—and the list can go on and on.”
Coun. William Reilly suggested a donation to West Lincoln Community Care.
The Council held two votes, accepting the report and determining the penalties, carried 5–1, with Mayor Dave Bylsma opposed.
The vote determined Jonker would be reprimanded, constituting a denouncement of his actions, and have his pay suspended for 30 days.
In addition, the councillor is required to account for the gifts and benefits received, and to reimburse those within 60 days.
In closing, Jonker posed a question to the council.
“Do we want to live in a country where we are not allowed to protest, or some of us are not allowed to protest, against what we believe and understand to be wrong and harmful for our country?”
