That's providing, though, Mr. Speaker, she pays concern to my comments.
Mr. Speaker, those are my comments with respect to the work that the Premier has done. I do want to state that I appreciate her hard work that she has done to serve this Assembly. I know that she works tirelessly but, at the same time, I think sometimes she gets lost in the paper that's created by the bureaucracy and by the Cabinet process.
I strongly urge her to start taking time for herself because in everything we do in life there is a balance, and I don't think she balances out her life sometimes with taking it easy or taking a rest. All she does is work, work, work, and it creates an imbalance in her life.
Mr. Speaker, now I want to talk a little bit about the Honourable Stephen Kakfwi. Members know that I don't like talking behind their backs, but this will be in the records so he can read it, and it's unfortunate that he's not here today.
Whenever I hear people in my constituency talk about this Minister, they sometimes seem to be questioning whether he really knows what the issues are. They comment that he seems to have an attitude problem, that he's aloof, that he comes across as being self-righteous, that he's so defensive and they wonder if he's really as superior as he lets on. But more importantly, they ask what he has accomplished?
I have a hard time responding to those comments and questions, Mr. Speaker, and I would like to be able to say, no, Mr. Kakfwi's a pretty good guy, he can be a lot of fun under the right circumstances and he really cares deeply about the underdog. But that's hard to do because it's so tough to come up with real examples of times when he has been able to take real, down-to-earth, practical, sensitive approaches to the issues. It sometimes seems like he's more a reflection of his bureaucrats than of himself.
What progress has he made? That's a tough one, too, Mr. Speaker. There has been a lot of talk about family law reform but only some minor amendments and a bill that was too little, too late for this Assembly.
There has been a lot of talk about creating an aboriginal justice system but there has been very little systematic change; in fact, I believe, almost none.
The needs of victims' organizations were ignored until brought up in this House, and I would like to credit my honourable colleague for Frame Lake for pursuing this issue so effectively. Even now, though, the funding levels that are being considered remain inadequate. Without money, these services cannot have the impact that northerners are counting on, no matter how committed the individual staff might be.
For years, Mr. Speaker, many of us looked forward to the time when corrections would be transferred to the Department of Justice, and now we wonder why this has happened. In fact, some times it seems that the only change to the corrections system has been the construction of that colourful -- I don't know if I can call it that; actually, I think it's quite ugly -- fence that goes part of the way around the Yellowknife Correctional Centre.
But I don't see many indications of new programs for aboriginal people and I don't see new models for community corrections. I don't see a marked increase in the number of correctional officers who are aboriginal people. How many shift supervisors at YCC are of aboriginal descent? Not too many, let me tell you. I don't see much growth in institutional programs geared towards traditional knowledge or native spirituality. The on-the-land program at Baffin Correctional Centre was a successful pilot project, but how many similar programs exist in the west? Inmates should be allowed to do more to prepare themselves for a successful reintegration into society than to watch TV at YCC or cut wood in Hay River.
I also want to indicate that I was pleased to hear that they are going to be training YCC inmates to help with the fire situation in the north. I thought that was very creative, and I commend YCC officials for thinking of that idea.
Mr. Speaker, the maintenance enforcement program is a great idea and, admittedly, it does have committed staff, but what is the point if you are only going to get a recorded message each time you phone? I asked the Minister about this several days ago. There's still a recorded message and there are still constituents who are attempting to reach the maintenance enforcement program. I think we've got to do more than just pay lip-service to the victims who are suffering from lack of continued support to the maintenance enforcement program.
So, Mr. Speaker, there is still a lot that needs to be done in the area of justice programs, and I know that I am not alone when I express disappointment about the lack of progress that has been made by this Minister. Perhaps, Mr. Speaker, some of the attention that's going on towards securing responsibility for criminal prosecutions could be better aimed in the direction of upgrading our existing programs and services. I have to wonder whether they really need more lawyers working for this government.
I wonder what this government has accomplished in terms of intergovernmental and aboriginal affairs. That's another one of Mr. Kakfwi's responsibilities, and I can't see that much progress, quite frankly. Responsibility for western constitutional development has been conveniently dropped on the steering committee of my honourable colleague, Mr. Koe, and this government still has no announced plans, no provisions for its position or response to Quebec's independence question. I need to point out that it's absolutely regrettable that a Minister of Aboriginal Affairs would vote to block the appearance of western Arctic chiefs and aboriginal leaders in this House. It's incredible to even imagine that happening, yet the Minister did go along with the rest of the Cabinet in opposing Mr. Antoine's motion last Friday, and I found that shameful, Mr. Speaker.
In summary, it seems as though the honourable Member for Sahtu has done a little bit of everything but not many jobs have been well done. Mr. Speaker, the one exception to this may be with respect to the role the Minister has taken in leading territorial opposition to Bill C-68, an ill-advised, southern-style attempt to control firearms in a manner that is detrimental to the people of the Northwest Territories. I certainly have been pleased to be a Member of the committee that has been working to change the federal government's position on this matter, and I want to note the hard work that Mr. Kakfwi has done in this regard.
Even though I am quite critical of his attitude and performance in some respects, the fact is that I do admire several of Mr. Kakfwi's other attributes. I wish, Mr. Speaker, that more northerners could adopt the personal goal he stands for in terms of non-violence, abstinence and family values. I believe that he would be a great role model of what a political leader should be like if only he were more approachable. When I think about the values that he stands for, I feel proud to see him as a Member of the Cabinet. I particularly hope that young people are noticing the examples that he sets. I really do want to give Mr. Kakfwi credit for the zero tolerance declaration. This was a bold and courageous stand for a politician to make. Now I hope he will do the next step and work with the Minister responsible for the Financial Management Board Secretariat to make sure this becomes a term of employment for all territorial public servants. Too many GNWT employees still believe that it is all right to pursue a violent lifestyle. This zero tolerance should allow for the development of a policy that will not tolerate territorial public servants that get involved in any type of violent action. They should be fired if they do, Mr. Speaker.
Because of his work in enforcing a more reasonable position from the federal government on Bill C-68 and because of his initiation and support for zero tolerance for violence and because of his personal commitment to positive leadership, it becomes at least somewhat possible to overlook some of Mr. Kakfwi's other shortcomings. For him, Mr. Speaker, I give him a C-plus for his performance as a Minister.
Mr. Speaker, a moment ago, I mentioned the Minister of Finance who also had the responsibilities for the growing Financial Management Board Secretariat, the Honourable John Pollard. For not doing more to deal with the growing deficit problem, I think Mr. Pollard should only get a B. In a way, that is probably more than any other Finance Minister could hope to get, given the same pressure that he has been facing. To give him credit, Mr. Pollard has been very fair regardless of what some of his other colleagues may think.