USA TODAY International Edition
Toronto mayor admits to buying illegal drugs
Rob Ford refuses direct appeal to take a leave of absence
Toronto Mayor Rob Ford told City Council leaders Wednesday that he won’t step down, despite buying illegal drugs and smoking crack cocaine in an incident of “sheer stupidity.”
“I ask forgiveness. I have apologized. I want to move on. That’s all I can say right now,” Ford said.
At one point, council member Denzil Minnan- Wong, a former Ford ally, asked the 44- year- old mayor point- blank if he had purchased illegal drugs in the past two years.
After a pause of almost nine seconds, the mayor replied, “Yes, I have.”
“I understand the embarrassment that I have caused. I am humiliated by it,” Ford said.
The embattled mayor, who took office three years ago, strongly rejected a direct appeal by several council members to step aside, saying he has always carried out his duties and would continue to do so.
“I’m most definitely keeping this job,” he said. “I am not leaving here. I’m going to sit here and going to attend every meeting.”
Ford, mayor of Canada’s largest city, said that he had “no one else to blame but myself” for a crack- smoking incident during a drunken stupor caught on video but that it would never happen again.
Council member Jaye Robinson opened the often- heated session by presenting a petition signed by 30 of the 44 City Council members asking the mayor to step down temporarily.
The petition was then formally accepted by the council on a 41- 2 vote. “Our city’s reputation has been damaged,” she said. “Together we stand to ask you to step aside and take a leave of absence.”
The packed City Council chamber erupted with applause when Robinson ended her speech, saying, “Let’s get on with city business.” The petition reads in part: “Toronto is distracted and for good reason. Our city’s reputation has been damaged and continues to suffer, and it has become difficult to focus on the pressing and substantive issues facing City Council. Today we stand together to ask that you step aside and take a leave of absence to address your challenges privately, outside of the public eye.”
After accepting the letter, the council took up a formal motion by council member Minnan- Wong, a longtime Ford supporter turned critic, that also called on Ford to apologize for misleading the public and to cooperate with a police investigation.
The mayor, who snacked on slices of apple during the debate, was jovial heading into the council chambers,
The Toronto Sun reports. “We’re gonna have some fun today,” he told reporters.
But the debate frequently turned heated, with people on all sides shouting, prompting Speaker Frances Nunziata to urge council members to “be civil” and “respect each other.”
During one exchange, MinnanWong told the council that the mayor, en route to the council chambers, had stepped in front of him in a threatening manner and demanded that Ford apologize.
Ford protested, saying, “I did not threaten him ( Minnan- Wong) in any way, shape or form.”
At another point, Ford said he would not speak to police, on advice of his attorney, about their investigation into corruption and drug use.