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Dunedin Mayor Dave Cull says a city councillor he accused of verbally abusing and harassing female staff within the Dunedin City Council has an "obligation" to explain himself.
Cr Lee Vandervis yesterday maintained his silence, refusing to answer Otago Daily Times questions for a third day.
On Tuesday, he was silenced by a procedural motion by Cr Kate Wilson, supported by a majority of councillors, which blocked him from debating a stalled investigation of a possible unitary council.
On Thursday, it emerged allegations by Mr Cull that Cr Vandervis was harassing council chief executive Sue Bidrose in a series of emails, as well as numerous other female staff in person, had contributed to Cr Wilson's move to gag him.
Mr Cull told the Otago Daily Times Cr Vandervis had a propensity to target female staff in particular, reducing some to tears, through "swearing, sometimes, overbearing, bullying actions and abuse".
Instead of answering specific questions, Cr Vandervis yesterday sent a brief "letter to the editor" to the newspaper, which appears today, and it again skirted many of the questions.
He would only say his emails were "necessarily persistent in the public interest", and offered copies to anyone who wanted them.
He did not address allegations he verbally abused female council staff in person, or that he had a propensity to target females more than men.
Mr Cull told the ODT he believed councillors - like the mayor - should front up to address such issues.
The council's code of conduct used to require councillors to be "as open as possible about their actions and those of the council, and be prepared to justify their actions".
That section had been removed when the code was last updated, in line with Local Government New Zealand guidelines, in 2016.
Despite that, Mr Cull believed he had an obligation to face media.
"We're public figures, we've been voted in ... if we do something that legitimately calls our judgement or values into question, insofar as we're responsible to the public, I think we have an obligation to answer."
Council chief executive Sue Bidrose has so far declined to say how many female council staff have filed reports, or complaints, about Cr Vandervis' behaviour.
The ODT has filed an official information request seeking answers.