A new direction
New group behind Prince Edward Island pride festival promises more transparency and accountability
Pride P.E.I.’s board of directors has been completely revamped after some members voiced concerns over the direction of the organization.
Irshaad Bijan Adatia, the new chairman of Pride P.E.I., said the major concerns centered around transparency and having a better focus on what people were doing and exactly how they were doing it. “There were some concerns over how people were representing the organization and we really wanted to turn it into something with very clear policies,” Adatia said.
“So, if members did have any concerns that it’s not just a he said, she said, they said.
“It’s (now) going to be a process. You submit a request, the board looks into it, we get an outside group of people to research it and see if there’s anything and come up with any repercussions or any situations that (are required) to remedy the situation.”
Pride P.E.I. held a special general meeting last week on the heels of its annual general meeting back in September. Members didn’t like the direction things were going and wanted change.
Adatia said members wanted a greater say in the direction Pride P.E.I. was going.
“So, they made a motion to no longer have a board and to bring in a board of trustees that would reorganize the organization and get everything together and then bring in a new set of bylaws and policies.
Over the last two months, that’s what we did.”
Three people were elected to the board of interim trustees Adatia, former Pride P.E.I. chairman Tyler Murnaghan and Janet Bradshaw.
Pride P.E.I. also redid the bylaws and elected a new board. Adatia was elected chairman. Ash Arsenault will serve as vicechairman, Andy Glydon is secretary and Bradshaw is the new treasurer.
The directors are Andrea MacPherson, John Kimmel, Matthew Richard, Will Ingram and Nancy Beth Guptill, who ran unsuccessfully for the mayor’s chair in Summerside.
Adatia said 15 people ran for the nine positions and 50 people attended the meeting.
The new bylaws set out a vision and a mission for the organization.