A real stickler for the house rules
Enterprise councillor John Leskiw III likes to see everything done properly
Paul Bickford
Northern News Services
Published Monday, December 22, 2014
ENTERPRISE
John Leskiw III believes in following the rules. And that includes as a councillor with the Hamlet of Enterprise.
"I've always been a big stickler for the rules," he said. "What is the purpose of having rules if they're not going to be followed?"
Leskiw explained this belief goes all the way back to when he was in school and growing up in Winnipeg.
"I was bullied quite heavily growing up and the school I went to at the time just felt that kids will be kids," he recalled, adding that was despite the fact the school had anti-bullying rules and policies. "The school just went, 'Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just ignore it and it will eventually go away.'"
Leskiw also pointed to how not following the rules impacted St. Vital, the district of Winnipeg where he lived. At the time, it was a fairly high-crime area, he said.
"The police were just like, 'Ah, who cares?' And I've seen that since I've moved out of St. Vital the area has become very heavy in crime, and the police are now trying to undo what had happened from over a decade of just not caring."
Leskiw stressed he does not compare St. Vital with Enterprise, which does not have a crime problem. However, he said he has seen many examples of hamlet rules being ignored in the past.
"And soon it becomes a fact of why even bother having laws if everyone is just going to do whatever they want?"
On hamlet council, Leskiw's belief in the rules manifests itself in a number of ways.
The councillor is often the first to object when a meeting shows signs of deteriorating into a yelling match or when members start exchanging personal insults.
"Then I will say, 'Hold on. We need to get back to the topic at hand,'" he said.
Plus, he is also a stickler for the rules about how government funding is spent. Which is good, Leskiw said, because the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs is getting a lot more stringent with how the budgets should be done and how councils operate. That means funding must be spent in a certain way according to the rules in the Hamlets Act, he said.
"Technically, if we do not follow those rules, Municipal and Community Affairs can come back and say, 'OK, we're revoking our grant,' and take the money back."
The 36-year-old was first appointed to hamlet council to fill a vacancy in 2009 and served for a year, but wasn't elected in the next vote. However, he was elected to council in December of 2013.
His only other experience with politics was on student council in high school, and in a student senate in college.
Leskiw and his father moved to Enterprise in about 2005.
These days, they manage and maintain two properties owned by his grandmother.
On hamlet council, he serves with his father, Enterprise Mayor John Leskiw II.
Leskiw said he is often asked what it is like to be a councillor while his father is mayor, adding some people believe he and his father are always going to be on the same side of an issue.
That is not the case, he said.
"I have my own personal interests – everyone does – and he has his own, and sometimes they clash."
Leskiw has another year on council before his seat is up for election.
