The board and
democracy
There is a built-in dilemma with democracy.
Politicians need sufficient
distance and independence from the voters to make unpopular decisions.
In Canadian politics, this is achieved by making it next to impossible
to recall politicians during their four to five-year term.
However in condo politics, the politicians—and that is what board
members are—do not have that lengthy distance separating them from the
voters. There is an election every year. So after every election, or at
the most two, the majority of the board can change.
What's more, if provoked, furious owners can throw
the whole board out of office at will.
In some cases this reality prevents
the board from raising revenues to sufficiently fund the corporation's
needs. It may also stop the board from enforcing certain provisions of
the declaration, by-laws and rules.
The outcome can be cheap and dirty politics in which the board worries
more about getting re-elected than in doing what's right for the
corporation.
In extreme cases, a board may make an application to the courts to have
a court-appointed administrator
assume the board's powers so that required decisions can be made
against the majority of the owner's wishes.
top
contents
chapter next