TORONTO –
Drama between members of the Rogers family seems to have spilled from the boardroom to social media.
Martha Rogers, a director of Rogers Communications, called for her brother, Edward Rogers, to “step down” in a series of tweets posted in the early hours of Saturday.
“You can stop me anytime by ceasing, desisting & stepping down. Know I won’t bring anything up without full receipts, I got them from the last 20+ years − who’s vulnerable now,” she wrote, seemingly calling for Edward resign as chair of the family trust that apparently controls the company’s voting shares.
In the tweets, Martha also said she will begin tweeting “what’s actually happening” along with evidence about his “Trump scandal.”
“I’ll gladly blow up my life to stop this,” she wrote, adding she had previously been threatened with “severe personal repercussions.”
The family feud reportedly began at the Canadian telecom and media giant after Edward attempted to replace CEO Joe Natale, a move that was blocked by Edward’s sisters, Martha and Melinda Rogers-Hixon, and mother Loretta Rogers. On Thursday, Edward was ousted as chair of the company. He remains on the board as a director.
Despite no longer being chair, Edward has apparently sought to assert control. In a news release late Thursday, he announced his plan to remove independent directors John Clappison, David Peterson, Bonnie Brooks, Ellis Jacob and newly named chairman John A. MacDonald from the company’s board.
In their place, he named Michael Cooper, Jack Cockwell, Jan Innes, Ivan Fecan and John Kerr as new members.
Martha stated that her father Ted Rogers, former president and CEO of Rogers Communications, had put her on the board as a check and balance to ensure nothing “insane” occurs within the company.
“This is for you Dad,” she wrote.
With files from The Canadian Press
