‘It was bizarre’: Tape face councillor escorted from council building

Friday, 20 February 2026

A councillor with tape over his mouth gatecrashed a meeting before being escorted from the council building.

The bizarre incident involving Benedict Ong, a first-term councillor, unfolded in the Dunedin City Council’s conference room on Friday morning.

The meeting was not an official public council meeting, but was attended by some councillors, Mayor Sophie Barker, council chief executive Sandy Graham and local MPs.

During the meeting Ong walked in with his mouth taped shut.

“It was bizarre,” one attendee said.

Ong was handed a letter by Barker dismissing him from his roles in council and escorted from the building by several councillors.

Barker said she could not comment on the incident but released a copy of the letter, dated February 20.

“This letter is to advise you that, given your extremely disrespectful behaviour to me this week, and refusal to remove disparaging comments about the chief executive officer online as requested yesterday, I am withdrawing the privilege of attending informal meetings with myself as Mayor, councillors and invited guests,” she wrote.

Barker also removed Ong from his role as portfolio deputy technology.

Furthermore, she would ask the council to approve removing Ong from his role as council representative of a museum board.

Barker added that she would reconsider reinstating those privileges if Ong removed his online criticism and apologised in writing to her and Graham.

She reminded him that councillors had signed a declaration that they would uphold a code of conduct.

A day before the incident, Ong had posted a video of himself wearing tape over his mouth.

Ong has not replied to a request for comment, but after publication, shared a link to this story along with a statement: “My lips were sealed and my questions for our Local MPs were censored today but my voice will not be silenced, in delivering for our most special city.”