Ähtäri City Council proposes temporary committee for potential member dismissals amidst misconduct allegations

The City Council of Ähtäri plans to propose the establishment of a temporary committee to facilitate the dismissal of members from both the City Council and the Audit Committee. The city council will meet on Wednesday solely to discuss this matter.

The issue arose following last week’s expiration of a demand for the resignation of two members from the Finnish Party amid allegations of misconduct. On August 19, the City Council decided that if these individuals did not voluntarily resign, they would recommend the dismissal of the entire body. The council members asked to resign included Juha Nortus from the City Council and Jarkko Salo, the Deputy Chair of the Audit Committee.

The individuals involved did not submit their resignation requests voluntarily. According to the law, a temporary committee can be established to prepare for the dismissal of municipal leaders or elected officials. The members of the committee must be either council members or alternate council members.

The committee’s role is to gather information and investigate the circumstances surrounding the allegations. It will formulate its own proposal regarding the outcome. However, the committee does not have decision-making authority; the final decision regarding dismissals will be made by the municipal council or, in welfare regions, by the regional council.

In times of trust issues within the municipal sector, temporary committees are stepping in to function similarly to police in preliminary investigations.