Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I MOVE that the Territorial Leadership Committee agrees that the selection for Members of Cabinet will be a vote of all Members in a secret ballot election in this Committee.

Thank you, Mr. Krutko. The motion is in order. We have a motion on the floor. Any discussion on the motion? The Chair recognizes the Member for Yellowknife South, Mr. Bell.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I will be supporting this motion today. I think we have had lengthy discussion in Caucus on various options and proposals that we might look at on how the Premier would select his own Cabinet. I think there was almost unanimous agreement that we should go with the status quo at this time. I respect that.

Several Members took me aside and mentioned they would like to have time to take this to their constituencies and discuss this before agreeing to anything of this sort. There was agreement that this proposal might have some merit, and hopefully we will get a chance to look at this and many other things in the months to come. I respect the wishes of all the Members that we maintain our current format. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. The Chair now recognizes the Member for Great Slave, Mr. Braden.

Thank you, Mr. Braden. To the motion. The Chair recognizes the Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Floyd Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. As well, I am in favour of the motion. There has been much discussion regarding this amongst the Members, and within our communities.

We are always changing in our system of government. This shows how new people to the Legislative Assembly is a positive way to bring forth change to evolve into a more representative government.

There has been concern shared by the public about accountability and transparency in our government. We will continue to work in a way that will try and bring that transparency, so the public will retain their confidence in this forum.

As we heard earlier from both speakers, this is an area to look at. I agree we need to have some form of change to make this system more representative and accountable to the public at large. I think there is an opportunity here to work together to make a difference for the people.

I respect the forum we have here, with people bringing new ideas to the table. I must say for the two gentlemen here to come forward and present this has taken a lot of strength, considering they are approaching this as new Members. Thank you for bringing this forward and creating the debate. Hopefully, we can continue to work together as we are here today. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. There is a motion on the floor. To the motion. Question has been called. All those in favour, please signify by raising your hands. All those opposed? The motion is carried.

Item 7c, regional representation. The Chair recognizes the Member for Thebacha, Mr. Michael Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I MOVE that the Territorial Leadership Committee agree that the six Cabinet Members will be chosen on a regional basis with two Members from the northern electoral districts, two Members from the Yellowknife electoral districts, and two Members from the southern electoral districts.

AND FURTHER, that the northern region include the electoral districts of Inuvik Boot Lakes, Inuvik Twin Lakes, Mackenzie Delta, North Slave, Nunakput, and Sahtu;

AND FURTHERMORE, that the Yellowknife region include the electoral districts of Frame Lake, Great Slave, Kam Lake, Range Lake, Weledeh, Yellowknife Centre and Yellowknife South;

AND FURTHERMORE, that the southern region include the electoral districts of Deh Cho, Hay River North, Hay River South, Nahendeh, Thebacha and Tu Nedhe.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. We have a motion on the floor. Any discussion on the motion? Question has been called. All those in favour of the motion, please signify by raising your hands. All those opposed? The motion is carried.

Item 8, the election of the Premier.

Are there any nominations for the Premier's position? The Chair recognizes the Member for Nunakput, Mr. Steen.

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, I nominate the Member for Sahtu, Mr. Stephen Kakfwi for the position of Premier.

Thank you, Mr. Steen. Mr. Kakfwi, do you accept the nomination?

Yes, I accept the nomination. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Kakfwi. Are there any further nominations for the position of Premier? The Chair recognizes the Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Nitah.

Thank you, Mr. Nitah. Does the Member for Inuvik Boot Lake accept the nomination?

Yes, I do.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Are there any further nominations for the position of Premier? There are no further nominations. I declare that nominations are closed.

The nominees are Mr. Kakfwi and Mr. Roland.

Each candidate is permitted to make a twenty-minute speech. The candidates will present in alphabetical order so I call upon Mr. Kakfwi for his presentation.

Thank you, Mr. Chair and congratulations. Good morning to my colleagues and people of the public who are attending in the gallery. I would like to take a minute to thank my constituents in the Sahtu, the women and the children who are up here in the North, the teachers who are on strike, the elders, the youth and the children who all have a stake in the decisions we are going to make today and tomorrow and for the duration of our term.

I want you to know that I am grateful for the privilege of serving the people of the North again, as I have for 12 years. I am grateful for the support from the Sahtu, support from my family, my wife and children.

I visited a friend of mine in the hospital last week. He has cancer. He is under a lot of pressure to decide what to do. He put this all in perspective. No matter what happens today and tomorrow, I have my health, my family, and the achievements I have been able to accomplish today. I have all of that, and that makes me grateful.

This is the third time that I have put my name forward to be Premier. Of course it is difficult to do again. No one likes to lose. It is difficult on family and friends. It is a painful experience. So why do I do it again? I think I am compelled because of the support that many of you have given me. It gives me the courage to not be afraid. Winston Churchill once said; “You can never win if you become too afraid to lose”.

I think it is important. As politicians we are going to face difficult decisions like this in the future. What do we do if we are afraid of criticism? If we are afraid of what people will say when we make difficult choices. I want you to know that I believe in myself. I believe my convictions and principles will serve you well. It is a sincere offer to serve again. I do it with my heart and with my convictions. As someone said, I still have fire in my belly. After all these years, I am not tired. I am not burnt out.

I see an exciting opportunity to lead the North into the new millennium. New and better relationships, and a new, stronger Cabinet; an Assembly in which all of us will treat each other with respect, set some targets and work together to achieve them. That is what I see. The commitment to serve aboriginal people has been my life story since I was 23 years old. I am 49 this year. There is nothing else that I choose to do. This is my life commitment.

I want to thank you for your support. I want to thank you for the words of encouragement that you have given me. When I was 12 years old, I started a life away from home for six years. In many ways I came from a very traumatic, broken life. When I went away to Brandon College, I met a man named Father Pochat. That man was my father figure for six years. I was afraid to go there because of the experience I had in Grollier Hall. He taught me that I should never be afraid. Fear should not prevent me from trying to do things.

I mention him because he was in the hospital earlier this week. I was concerned about him and I thought about the contribution he made to my life. Also, I want to acknowledge Alexie Arrowmaker, a very distinguished Dene elder. He is known from one end of the valley to the other. I want to thank him for simply mentioning me by name at the signing of the agreement-in-principle in Rae. This man is very difficult to get acknowledgement from. In all the years that I have served, I think he has acknowledged me twice. I want to thank him and I want him to know that I noticed it.

I want to talk to the youth. In Deline I heard a young woman rise in frustration, fear and anger to say, "If self-government is not going to keep my family at home, if it is not going to get my people to stop drinking, if self-government is not going to help give me a stable home and if it is not going to do anything about alcoholism and drug abuse and violence, then why do I want self-government?” There is anger out there. They want to know, what is this government going to do for us? Where is this better life? Who is going to work on it? And why is it that they have to choose between this government and aboriginal governments?

I know the women, the children and the youth are the most vulnerable; they need a commitment from us to do something for them. I want to do that. What is my message today? It is that all my life, all I ever wanted was a better life for myself, for my family, my relatives, for the Dene, and it grew to the Metis, to the Inuvialuit and all northern people. That is my commitment. By being in this government, serving as your Premier, I will set some measurable and achievable targets to make life better for all of us: for all women, for our families, for our youth, for our elders, for our children, for our teachers, for those people that work for us. That is how I want to do it. That is what I want to do.

There is a new beginning. Some of us have been elected for the first time; some of us have been re-elected. People should have confidence that we are going to do something, that we will achieve something. I would like to suggest that I have the confidence, the experience, the conviction and the strength to deliver that with you to the people of the North.

We have two women elected to this Legislature. I know Jane Groenewegen from Hay River is prepared to serve as a Member of Cabinet. Capable, strong, determined, principled people like Jane must be given an opportunity to serve. I point her out because she more than anybody has put so much on the line in order to serve people and the public in the last term.

I want all of you to know specifically that this individual has my full support and endorsement. These are the kinds of people I want to see on Cabinet: strong people, people that do not owe anybody anything out there. People that are not going to be patronizing friends, people who are going to work for the interests of everyone. We will be committed to being accountable, and to being strong members of a team. This is what we need. We need to work together so that every community in the valley and region can be assured that we will try to get something for them.

We are not going to come here to just meet and talk. Give us some targets, give us some objectives and we will work to achieve them.

A teachers' strike is pending now. I want to mention a letter I received from a constituent, Jill Taylor, from Norman Wells. It is a very moving letter, a letter that compels me to ask what is going on in the hearts and minds of our teachers? What compelled them to go on strike? What is it? Do we really understand what is going on in their hearts and their minds? Is there something we can do to come closer together again? I just want you to know that I read the letter and it is staying on my desk and I hope we can do something to resolve the differences we have. We do not have any money. We are going into a massive deficit but we still have the will. We will look at the issues and try to come together somehow, to address the needs that we all have.

We cannot abandon each other simply because there is a lack of money. We need to compromise and we need to reach out and try to understand one another. We are prepared to do that in every instance. There is a Minister of Youth. We need to reach out to the youth and let them know there is a portfolio assigned to a Minister. This Minister can find some way to reach out to the youth and to see what it is this incredibly fast growing segment of our population need and want. What is it they see for the future?

Over the years, I worked in many capacities. More than anything, I have always believed that I can do things. I am an ordinary person with some wonderful opportunities that I have seized and wonderful people I have worked with... capable people. That has been the secret: finding opportunities, seizing them and finding the right people to get the job done. And it did not matter if it was in Good Hope, if it was in the Dene Nation, or if it was in the different ministerial assignments that I have had over the years. That has always been the secret to achieving results.

I think we can do that with aboriginal governments. Mr. Antoine has led the way in developing a position, along with Mr. Dent and myself, to agree that we will share lands and resources with aboriginal peoples and aboriginal governments in the North that will embody a Northern Accord. This will give us the agreement necessary so that aboriginal governments will have assurance that when it is time to be established and set up, they will have the respect, the integrity and the financial capacity to be independent and to be equals.

In the meantime, this government must continue to have the respect of people because it is serving everyone. They all elected us here. There will come a day when some of our people will choose to go with aboriginal governments. We must prepare for that as well. I have been there.

I have worked as hard as anyone to get recognition of aboriginal rights. As a strong supporter of claims and self- government agreements, my track record is there. Of course, some of you have said, not everybody is happy with you. That is true.

The Premier will know; people call for resignations on a moments notice. It is difficult to keep everybody happy. One thing is certain, my enemies, if there are any, (and I will not concede there is even one), will always do their worst. But, I tell you; I will always do my best.

There is a need to recognize the support of the chiefs, the Metis leaders that I received. They may not be as vocal as others, but they are there. I have worked for years as president of the Dene Nation. I have served with aboriginal people. I have been elected since 1987 for the Sahtu riding.

I have been elected by each Legislature that I have served on to be a Minister. That tells you I can get the job done, I can get along with people and maybe I do not smile enough. That has been a criticism. People have called me names - called me Stoneface. It is true. But that is the way I am, maybe because of the traumas I have had. Let me tell you, I work hard at trying to smile all the time...it does not come easy. But I am working on it, as my children would say.

There are many things that I know I can do better. But I do have a good record for getting things done. There will be compassion, compromise and moral commitment to sit down with every group in the Territory. People that support the Deh Cho proposal who could sit down and make a commitment. What is it that we can do to help get the respect and recognition the proposal deserves? What about the Yellowknives Dene First Nation? When has anybody ever sat down and said, “Okay, for the next three days, we are going to sit and talk about this until some of your concerns, interests, and issues are addressed.” We need to make some commitments. We need to focus one at a time on achievable results.

There are many other things that could be said but I think the main message today is simple. I want a better life for everyone. I want to work so that we have a good future. We do that through making sure this government is a good government. We make sure this government is accountable, that it has the resources and the lands necessary to be independent and provide the same for aboriginal governments for the day when some of us choose to live under that government. This is what the people of the North expect and I believe that is what we can deliver. Thank you.

-- Applause

Thank you, Mr. Kakfwi. Members, before we proceed to our next speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to recognize in the gallery the former Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories, Mr. Sam Gargan.

-- Applause

In addition to that we also have Mr. Gargan's predecessor and government leader, Mr. Richard Nerysoo.

-- Applause

We also have the honour of the presence of the current Speaker of the Nunavut Legislative Assembly, Mr. Levi Barnabas.

-- Applause

He is accompanied by two former Members of this Assembly, who are now Members in the Nunavut government, Mr. Kelvin Ng and Mr. Kevin O'Brien.

-- Applause.

Thank you for recognizing the former Members. I would now like to call upon the second nominee for Premier, Mr. Floyd Roland.

Thank you Mr. Chair. Before we begin, I would like to start off with a bit of a tradition. I would like to start by sending greetings back to my folks and my constituents back home in Inuvik. Thankfully, my wife and children are here today to witness this process. To my beautiful wife, Shawna and my children, thank you very much for your support and understanding. Without it, I would not be here today.

To the residents of Inuvik, thank you for your continued support and your sincere encouragement to seek the position of Premier. You put me in this position and I will do my very best to honour your trust and the trust of all Northerners, no matter what the end result is today.

To all Members and residents of the new Northwest Territories, Happy New Year and welcome to the 21^st century. This is an opportunity for a clean new start and fresh new leadership committed to positive change. I hope to have the good fortune of gaining your support so I can provide effective and open leadership with a strong Cabinet team and able Ordinary MLAs.

We need a Premier who is committed to working on behalf of all Northerners. A Premier dedicated to ensuring that it is the residents of the Northwest Territories that benefit from government programs and services, not government or its agencies.

We need a Premier who is open, honest and a straight shooter who will not dance around tough questions with open-ended rhetoric, and who will not shy away when the heat is turned up.

We need a Premier who can build relationships in Ottawa and the provinces.

We need a Premier who can bring all groups together, to support aboriginal groups in their quest for a fair and timely settlement of land claims, self-government and treaty-land entitlement for the mutual benefit of all.

We need a Premier all MLAs and the public can trust and have confidence in and who will instill confidence and enthusiasm in our public servants by providing clear direction.

We need a Premier to create the necessary environment that will help produce healthy communities and attract private sector investment in order to expand economic development opportunities for Northerners.

These are some of the qualities I believe are necessary for the position of Premier.

Although there are many priority issues to be dealt with, the most immediate and the key to our economic viability, in my view, is to ensure the establishment of an intergovernmental process with federal and aboriginal governments that will allow us to discuss issues of mutual concern. Specifically, I am speaking about the issues of economic development, northern control of northern resources and resource revenue sharing.

As you are aware, the realities this government's economic situation demand that we must create new revenues to ensure that we continue to provide essential services, such as education and health care to our residents.

New revenues are essential if we are to effectively manage the current and projected deficit we are facing. This deficit is not sustainable. We owe it to ourselves and especially to our children to take bold new steps to find a northern solution to this difficult problem. It will not be easy. We will have to be creative and take some risks but I believe we can be successful.

A northern solution to this problem is northern control over northern resources. This will provide northern governments, not Ottawa, and Northerners, not Ottawa bureaucrats, control of how development takes place in the Northwest Territories.

This important element, along with a resource revenue sharing agreement, is really what devolution is all about: taking control of our future and taking appropriate risks to increase the economic pie for the benefit of all Northerners.

Unlike other provinces, the management and responsibility for minerals, oil and gas, land and water, remains with the federal government. The only way we are going to be successful in generating more revenues for our government is to reach an agreement with the aboriginal governments and the federal government on northern control of northern resources.

Just as important, we must ensure that a fair resource revenue sharing agreement is negotiated that ensures adequate funding to all governments, be they public or aboriginal, in order to maintain programs and services for our residents.

Agreements dealing with resource issues are being signed between provincial and aboriginal governments across Canada. We in the Northwest Territories have an opportunity to develop a new model that better serves our residents.

There has been a lot of discussion over the past several months on the establishment of an intergovernmental forum,

that would bring together aboriginal governments and the federal and territorial governments to discuss these matters on a government to government to government basis. This forum is a practical means to facilitate these important discussions and as Premier, I would strongly support and participate in this process.

The intergovernmental forum and the results it can produce, in my opinion, will lay the foundation for not only generating more revenues for all governments, but will also provide the required spark for economic development.

The intergovernmental forum provides the opportunity to strengthen our partnerships with aboriginal governments and the federal government. It will provide us the opportunity to begin developing an overall, comprehensive strategy to ensure our economic potential and obtain a greater share of the benefits from the minerals, diamonds and oil and gas, that for the most part, currently only go to Ottawa.

As Premier, I would commit to the development of a comprehensive economic development strategy that takes into account the economic needs of all regions of our Territory. A strategy that respects the environment, that preserves the land, water and wildlife that have sustained our people since the beginning of time.

Economic development, no matter where it takes place, is beneficial for all residents so long as it is undertaken in an environmentally sustainable way. This is not an issue that should pit regions against one another or be seen as pitting urban communities against rural communities. Economic development is NOT about carving up an ever-shrinking pie. Economic development is about increasing the size of the entire pie so as to provide more benefit.

It is about supporting small business. It is about supporting one of our Territory's still underdeveloped renewable assets, tourism, which is about our land and our people.

As Premier, I support tourism because it is something that all residents can participate in. Tourism provides economic opportunities for small business and other important parts of our society, such as hunters and trappers. As a former tourism operator, I know first hand the benefits that this important industry can provide. Tourism is an important means of recognizing all our cultures and the strength that this diversity brings us.

However we need tools to accomplish this. Since the phasing out of the federal government's Economic Development Agreement several years ago, we have been without any federal funding to stimulate economic growth in the Northwest Territories.

The fact that the Northwest Territories does not have access to economic development agencies run by the federal government, such as the Western Economic Diversity Agency or the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, is totally unacceptable. Why is the Northwest Territories excluded?

It is unacceptable that the federal government has not delivered on its budget promise of three years ago to provide some action on this front.

I think we must take a stronger position with the federal government that ensures they provide economic development funding similar to what they provide in other regions of this country. As Premier, I will ensure this issue is forcefully put forth.

We need to take a stronger position with Ottawa and obtain access to funding so that we can plan and be prepared for when the full development actually occurs.

It is apparent that oil and gas exploration and development would provide an economic impact greater than diamonds. Unlike the diamonds, we want to be ahead of the game and be ready with skilled workers and prepared businesses, not reacting and playing catch-up. We need to look and plan ahead and be prepared if we are going to create economic development opportunities for our people.

I would like to give you a brief history of my background.

I am Inuvialuit. While I am proud to be Inuvialuit, I take just as much pride in being a Northerner. I am committed to working just as hard for all Northerners, aboriginal and non-aboriginal, no matter where they come from.

I have a long history of public service in community and regional organizations including terms as president of the Inuvik Hunters and Trappers Association, president of the Western Arctic Tourism Association and councilor and deputy mayor of Inuvik. I have also been a small business owner and a public servant.

I was first elected to this Assembly in 1995. My first three years as an Ordinary Member provided me with an excellent opportunity to view the operation of government from outside of Cabinet. More importantly, it provided me with an appreciation of the important role non-Cabinet Members play in the decision making process.

During my time as an Ordinary Member, I had the good fortune to serve as chair of the Western Coalition. The mandate of the Coalition was to work towards establishing a stable and viable new Territory after division. In many ways, the Western Coalition illustrates what can be achieved when government, aboriginal, business and community leaders work towards a common goal.

As Premier, I would be committed to continue to work with aboriginal, business, and community leaders to create a strong, stable, and more economically independent Northwest Territories.

As Minister of Transportation, I saw first hand the economic benefits and the increase in the standard of life the development of transportation infrastructure can bring to a community.

I recognize the important link between economic development, tourism development and transportation infrastructure. Even small developments such as access roads to small lakes or gravel pits provide benefits. As Premier, I am committed to increasing our transportation infrastructure in order to attract private sector investment and provide benefits to our residents.

As Minister of Housing, I witnessed first hand the one significant problem that raises the cost of our social programs, such as health care and education, the lack of adequate and affordable housing for many residents, especially those in our small rural communities.

Inadequate, over-crowded housing leads to more pressure for our health care and education systems, because many of our children do not have proper shelter.

As Premier, I am committed to strongly pressure the federal government to live up to its obligations here in the Northwest Territories.

The recent federal announcement on funding for the homeless is a tragedy for Northerners. Northerners without a home do not sleep on the streets in winter. They sleep in already over- crowded homes. We do not need money for the homeless - we need more money for more homes. I am committed to making the access to more federal funding for housing a priority.

As Minister of Health and Social Services and Minister responsible for Social Policy Renewal, I quickly came to understand the real meaning of “forced growth” and “sustainability”. I have had to work closely with my provincial, territorial and federal counterparts to deal with many issues, such as a lack of federal funding and a national nursing shortage.

It was against the advice of many people that I requested the Health and Social Services portfolio, perhaps one of the toughest portfolios in government. When I spoke to Premier Antoine, he seemed shocked and relieved at the same time. I knew it would be hard and sometimes unpleasant work, with demands outstripping resources.

As Premier, I would be committed to working in partnership with Cabinet and Ordinary Members to maintain funding for health and social services, education and housing programs. This can only be achieved by re-allocating scarce resources and finding new sources of revenues. However, these are the core services that we provide to our residents and they need to be maintained and improved.

Being a Minister requires a lot of hard work and time away from home and family. The job of Premier will also require a lot of hard work and time away from family. I accept this and my wife and children accept this. In fact, it is for our children that I have committed myself to public life.

Our new government has many challenges ahead of us. We need a new fiscal relationship with Ottawa. We need to further develop our partnership with aboriginal governments and get the intergovernmental forum off the ground so we can get a resource revenue sharing agreement that will spark economic development and generate the revenues we so badly need to provide essential programs and services.

As Premier, I will be counting on the experience of my Ministers and key staff to put together a solid team to lead our government. I will also be counting on the energy and constructive criticism of Ordinary MLAs to keep us on our toes.

I want to acknowledge and continue the good work of Jim Antoine, who stepped into the Premier's job at a very difficult time, yet made tremendous strides in building this government's relationship with aboriginal organizations.

I would like to acknowledge all the MLAs I had the good fortune to work with and learn from over the past four years.

By working together, we can overcome these challenges and take advantage of the opportunities to strike out in a new direction in the 21^st century.

As I look forward to the new century, I do so with great optimism and excitement, as we have before us unparalleled opportunities. Opportunities that can best be challenged by new, vibrant, honest and energetic leadership, and a new Legislative Assembly committed to moving forward together.

I believe I can bring you this leadership. Thank you.

-- Applause

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The next step is to open the floor to questions of the candidates by the Members. Members are permitted to ask up to four questions each of the Premier candidates.

Before we open the floor to questions, is it the plan of the House to take a break and then when we return, we can proceed to the next part? The House shall take a break.

--Break

Welcome back to the Territorial Leadership Committee. We are on item 8, selection of the Premier. The next step is the questioning of the candidates. Each of the Members is allowed to ask up to four questions to each of the candidates. If Members would like to indicate if they would like to ask all four questions or reserve a couple for later, please do so.

I will select Members randomly. The Chair recognizes the Member for Mackenzie Delta, followed by the Member for Weledeh.