Complaints summary shared by Council

The Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) posted a summary of complaints that had been lodged towards members of the council table by the rest of the table - although it did not disclose the nature of these complaints.

“The details of the above-mentioned complaints will not be released as the decision did not provide for a public disclosure,” said the MCK in the press release.

That said, current council chief Jeremiah Johnson and former council chief Iohahí:io Delisle posted the nature of their complaints on social media.

The complaint against Johnson, which was reported on by The Eastern Door in May of this year, stemmed from an incident in early 2025 when he had shared confidential information with a community member, resulting in a two-day suspension without pay.

Delisle, meanwhile, said the first complaint came when he missed three Monday council meetings after the death of his father in December 2025. He said he had exhausted his bereavement leave and, when an extension was denied, he felt forced to use vacation time, resulting in what the rest of the table saw as a breach of policy, he said.

He described the second incident as having been centered on allegations of breaching the code of conduct and ethics standards during an incident at the MCK reception desk with a community member.

Both complaints were closed following Delisle’s resignation earlier this year.

Although not shared on the press release, both Cody Diabo and Jeffrey Diabo disclosed to The Eastern Door what the nature of the complaints against them were.

Cody said that he had actually reported his own potential breach to the rest of the table, stemming from a situation in early 2025.

“One of the council members was on a leave, and I was getting requests from community members about the situation. I had reiterated that I can’t talk about it, they’re on a leave. They had heard rumours that it was related to drugs or alcohol, and I said, no, that’s not why they’re on leave,” said Cody.

He told the table about what had happened, and recused himself from the discussion on whether or not that merited action. It was ultimately decided that no further action was needed.

Jeffrey said that in January 2025, the First Nations Education Council (FNEC) had reached out to him asking for political support in order to meet with the Quebec government about the adult education file.

After a meeting between Jeffrey and the FNEC, they had asked Jeffrey Diabo for a letter of support that would be sent to then-Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador regional chief Ghislain Picard, who would be meeting with provincial minister of Indigenous affairs Ian Lafrenière.

“The council felt that I didn’t get permission from them to send this letter, even though it’s part of my responsibilities and has nothing to do with Kahnawake,” said Jeffrey, who more than a year later still disagreed with the decision to suspend him two days without pay.

“I just felt that it wasn’t justified to file a complaint, because I was just doing my job,” said Jeffrey, the lead on the education portfolio and one of the chiefs on the external government relations portfolio.

Paul Rice did not share with The Eastern Door what the nature of the complaint that resulted in a three-day suspension without pay was.

However, he did say that he would be discussing the complaint on Friday, July 24, during his scheduled appearance on K1037’s noon talk show.

Cody said that the council of chiefs have been in discussion for a long time about changing the complaints process, including on the procedure for community advising on the results of complaints.

“Do we do it annually, do we do it at the midway point of the term, do we do it when a complaint is received, or finalized, or when a decision is made? Those are still things that we still have to work out,” he said.

“The council as a whole felt that it was important that the community be made aware of complaints.”

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