Vancouver city councillor apologizes for calling fellow members ‘drug users’

Vancouver city councillors from every party, except ABC, held a press conference on Tuesday to raise a serious concern.

“Egregious falsehood and misinformation that’s being perpetuated on the internet,” Green councillor Pete Fry said.

A video, posted to WeChat by councillor Lenny Zhou, shows him speaking in Mandarin about supportive housing, referring to it as “drug houses.”

“And alleges that some non-ABC councillors are drug users and distribute drugs,” independent councillor, Rebecca Bligh, said at the press conference.

The councillors strongly deny those claims and call the video, which has been shared thousands of times on the Chinese social media platform, misinformation.

“I live in a predominantly Chinese neighbourhood, where my neighbours speak Chinese,” Fry said.

“The insinuation that I might be a drug dealer, to my neighbours, is frankly outrageous.”

The group says the comments damage their reputation and undermine confidence in city decisions, calling it part of a broader pattern.

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“It really rivals what we were seeing in the ’80s around moral panics. This is a moralization of a health issue,” COPE councillor Sean Orr said.

The group says the allegations may breach council’s code of conduct.

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In a statement to Global News, Zhou said that he posted the video to outline his opposition to a motion on supportive housing.

“My comments were based on incorrect information, and for that I unequivocally apologize,” he said. “I am retracting my statement, and I’ve taken down the video.”

He did say there are members of council who “have made it clear that they support the province’s model of supportive housing and the liberalization of drug use in our city. Those are positions that I fundamentally disagree with.”

Zhou acknowledges that he did not live up to the standards that he strives for.

Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim also released a statement on Tuesday, saying he wanted to thank Zhou for acknowledging his mistake and taking responsibility.

“Councillor Zhou has always been a passionate advocate for Vancouver’s Chinese community,” Sim said.

“He works hard to ensure residents, especially seniors and families who rely on in-language updates, understand what’s happening at city hall and how it affects them.”

But the councillors said Sim’s statement does not go far enough.

“He should state clearly that personal allegations against colleagues are unacceptable,” Bligh said.

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