Morley Googoo has been removed from his role as a regional chief for the Assembly of First Nations.
The chiefs of Newfoundland and Nova Scotia announced the decision in a media release on Friday, saying that that Googoo’s removal was decided at a meeting, “which was called in response to recent events that have occurred during Mr. Morley Googoo’s suspension from his role with the Assembly of First Nations.”
“The Nova Scotia and Newfoundland Chiefs continue to support AFN’s ongoing investigation into Mr. Googoo and until a new Regional Chief is selected, the Chiefs of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland will work with AFN to ensure their region is represented and informed,” the release read.
READ MORE: AFN national Chief Perry Bellegarde issues proposal letter to suspend regional Chief Morley Googoo
The executive of the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) confirmed the news and said it “recognizes and respects” the decision.
“Under AFN By-Laws, Mr. Googoo is no longer a Board member of the AFN and the region must appoint or elect a new member. In the interim, the AFN will work with the regional leadership to ensure the interests of their region are heard and addressed,” the AFN executive said in a statement.
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The chiefs of Newfoundland and Nova Scotia said they would not be commenting any further or provide more details.
Googoo did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Googoo was suspended from his role as regional in July in response to allegations of harassment and gender-based bullying.
In earlier reports, it was revealed that complaints had been made to the federal government by Cheryl Maloney, past president of the Nova Scotia Native Women’s Association (NSNWA), who claimed Googoo had bullied her in the workplace and made her fearful for her position. Maloney also alleged she was harassed over the phone during a 20-minute conversation with Googoo in 2017.
In July Googoo denied he had been abusive towards women in the workplace.
“I have to deny any gender bias,” said Googoo. “I have women all working for me, and they all can tell you that I allow empowerment and I allow them to lead. The same with my community when I was chief for 19 years — I had over 70 per cent of my staff being women.”
Following Maloney’s complaints, the federal, provincial and Indigenous governments, under the Tripartite Forum, called for an internal investigation by an independent lawyer.
A report on the investigation was submitted to the Tripartite Forum in September 2018 after the lawyer had conducted extensive interviews and reviewed emails, texts and personal and organization notes and social media before concluding that Googoo’s behaviour had been “aggressive” towards some of the women and that the behaviour constituted “bullying.”
As part of the report, the lawyer found that other women with the NSNWA had felt bullied and intimidated by Googoo.
— With files from Silas Brown and Jesse Thomas
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