This is page numbers 1945 - 1984 of the Hansard for the 15th Assembly, 3rd Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was program.

Topics

Jane Groenewegen

Jane Groenewegen Hay River South

Mr. Speaker, I invite as many northerners as possible to show up at Mr. Scott's town hall and tell him what we think. He will have our MP, the Minister of Northern Development, sitting right beside him and maybe it would be a good time to also ask her if she still represents the constituents of the North who elected her. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for North Slave, Mr. Zoe.

Henry Zoe

Henry Zoe North Slave

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. (English not provided)

Mr. Speaker, after my previous statements and statements by my colleagues over the past few days, it was with great disappointment that we heard on the 5:30 news last night that the Minister of Indian and Northern Affairs has gone ahead and named a British Columbia resident who was not nominated by board members as the new chair of the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board.

Mr. Speaker, the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act says very clearly that the Minister shall appoint the board chairs from among persons nominated by the board members unless the board members failed to nominate someone acceptable to the Minister within a reasonable time. In this case, the board did nominate three people, Mr. Speaker. Is the DIAND Minister going to explain to the board and to the people of the Northwest Territories why, in his opinion, none of these three nominees, all northern residents, were acceptable? Where is the accountability, Mr. Speaker?

Mr. Speaker, this entire Mackenzie Valley Resource Management regime was set up as part of the implementation of the Sahtu and Gwich'in land claim agreements. The federal government just finished ratifying the Tlicho agreement, which will make us part of that regime too. These agreements were signed in good faith by our people with the understanding that the federal government would honour the spirit of its own laws and respect wishes of board members.

Mr. Speaker, the board structure was carefully designed so the interest of aboriginal people, the Government of the Northwest Territories and Canada were all balanced. The fallback provision allowing the Minister to appoint a chair who was not nominated by the board is the exception, not the rule. I don't believe it was ever intended, at least from our side, that this would be used except in extreme cases; for example, if the board was unable to come up with any nominations at all. Yet the Minister has gone ahead and appointed a chair who doesn't even live in the Northwest Territories. Is this the kind of total disregard and the wishes of the board and northerners what we have to look forward to?

What kind of message...

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Mr. Zoe, your time for your Member's statement has expired.

Henry Zoe

Henry Zoe North Slave

Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

The Member is seeking unanimous consent to conclude his statement. Are there any nays? There are no nays. You may conclude your statement, Mr. Zoe.

Henry Zoe

Henry Zoe North Slave

Thank you, colleagues. Mr. Speaker, what kind of message does this send to the NWT residents, to the Sahtu people, to the Gwich'in people and the Tlicho people, not to mention the groups out there who are still negotiating?

I don't know what to think anymore, Mr. Speaker. With the ratification of the Tlicho agreement and the recent progress on devolution talks, I was feeling very optimistic about our future. Finally, it seems like we are getting somewhere in our struggle to take back control of our lands and resources, and then the federal government comes out with this colonialism action, putting someone who doesn't even live here in charge of a board that is going to make some critical decisions for the Northwest Territories in the next few years; decisions that will affect many generations of northerners, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, Minister Scott will be in the North next week, and I will urge the Premier to tell him how strongly we object to his decision and ask him to rescind the chair's appointment and appoint one of the board's nominees. It is what he should have done in the first place. If the Minister can't or won't fix this, then maybe the Premier needs to go over his head to the Deputy Prime Minister or even to the Prime Minister himself. Mr. Speaker, we can't just stand by and let the federal government drag us back to the 19th century. This colonialism has to end. We need to send a strong message that these are our lands, our resources and our future. We live here and we know what is best for ourselves and for our territory. Mahsi.

---Applause

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Zoe. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Kam Lake, Mr. Ramsay.

David Ramsay

David Ramsay Kam Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to use my Member's statement today to talk about the recent appointment of a new chairman to the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board. In January, the Mackenzie Valley Land and Water Board recommended three candidates for the job; all of them residents of the Northwest Territories. Territorial MLAs were not informed in advance of the appointment to the board, and many of us had even written recommendations for those who were passed over.

As Members of this Legislative Assembly, we take our jobs very seriously. This appointment was seen as being a pivotal one, given the amount of resource development

that is taking place here. Regular Members were planning to move a motion asking the Premier to call Minister Scott to register our concerns. Yesterday afternoon, during a break in our proceedings here in the House, we were shocked to find that a non-northerner, a non-nominee, was appointed, and that the three northern candidates were passed over.

Mr. Speaker, in the year that I have been here, I have listened quite intently to the statements made by our Premier and our government regarding how our relationship with Ottawa is progressing. The action taken yesterday by Minister Scott is nothing but regressive and gives me no comfort in his or the governing Liberal Party of Canada's intentions in dealing with northern Canada. The colonialist approach has to stop.

We have to take control of our own affairs. Why do we continue to allow ourselves to be made the fool by Ottawa? Is it too much to ask for Minister Scott to pick up the phone and call our Premier and get a read on the politics of the appointment of a non-northerner, non-nominee? I don't think so. Politics is a funny business, Mr. Speaker, and I must admit, I had a good laugh when I watched Rick Mercer's Monday Report just six short weeks ago in which he made light of the fact that he and his comedy show had been to the Northwest Territories twice and that the Minister of DIAND, Mr. Scott, had not been here once. It has been 10 months since the federal election. Thanks to Rick Mercer, Mr. Scott is finally going to come north next week.

We will have many questions for Minister Scott when he visits us next week: Where is the economic development money announced in the Throne Speech last year? Where is the money to clean up Giant Mine? Are we expected to just stand by and watch DIAND govern and run our territory?

Mr. Speaker, right out of the Mackenzie Valley Resource Management Act, it states quite clearly in section 12(1)...Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

The Member is seeking unanimous consent to conclude his statement. Are there any nays? There are no nays. You may conclude your statement, Mr. Ramsay.

David Ramsay

David Ramsay Kam Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It states quite clearly, "The chairperson of a board shall be appointed by the federal Minister from persons nominated by a majority of the members." It would appear obvious that Minister Scott didn't get a chance to read this act. Where was our Member of Parliament in all of this? Does she work for us, the constituents who elected her, or does she work for Minister Scott in DIAND? Certainly, these are questions that all northerners have, and they should ask Minister Scott and Ms. Blondin-Andrew next week when they are here. Thank you.

---Applause

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Ramsay. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Women And Children's Healing And Recovery Program
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1950

Sandy Lee

Sandy Lee Range Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, quite clearly we are developing a theme here but, if I may, I just would like to use my Member's statement to speak about a very important program in Yellowknife. I support my colleagues in what they are saying about the other topic. But, Mr. Speaker, there is a very important program for women and children that is on the chopping block. I am hoping that, through this statement, the Minister of Health and Social Services will do everything in his power to make sure that this program not only survives but thrives.

Mr. Speaker, the program I am talking about is the Women and Children's Healing and Recovery Program being administered by the YWCA in Yellowknife. This program is a product of years of effort on the part of the women's community, started by the Status of Women with their document, Keeping Women and Communities Strong, where community women struggling with addictions ask for help with trauma, the root cause of many self-destructive behaviours. This eventually led to a pilot of three years which was recently evaluated, in July of 2003, by Four World Centres for Development Learning, a group that has evaluated many aboriginal healing programs.

Based on their recommendations, the YWCA changed the model of program delivery to give program control to aboriginal women so that the program could be truly culturally appropriate and the aboriginal staff at this program are now asking why is it that when all these improvements were made, the program is being considered for cutting.

Mr. Speaker, I could tell you that I had the privilege, by invitation, to visit the safe home where the women and children live while they undergo this program and treatment. I sat there and talked to a woman and her family over tea and bannock. They told me how this program is helping them heal and work out many issues that they have to deal with and they need to have a safe place to do it in. I could also tell you that, Mr. Speaker, women that come to this program come from all over the North, and the majority of the women are aboriginal. We know that we don't have a program for women and especially not one where women can go with their children. We know that treatment works better when women and children stay together. So, Mr. Speaker, I am sure that the Minister agrees that this program is worth keeping and worth fighting for. I would like the Minister to reconsider funding for this program. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Women And Children's Healing And Recovery Program
Item 3: Members' Statements

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Some Hon. Members

Hear! Hear!

---Applause

Women And Children's Healing And Recovery Program
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1950

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.

Fort Simpson Long-term Care Facility
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1950

Kevin A. Menicoche

Kevin A. Menicoche Nahendeh

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss the Fort Simpson long-term care facility. The department recently completed a review that supports my argument. The review identified the growing

senior population of the Northwest Territories and the need for additional long-term care beds although they insist this need is in the long term. Mr. Speaker, in the long term is not good enough for me.

There are currently 16 residents in the Fort Simpson long-term care facility: one resident from Fort Liard; 12 residents from Fort Simpson; two residents from Jean Marie River; and one resident from Wrigley. As you can see, Mr. Speaker, the facility is being widely used over the entire Nahendeh district. The maximum capacity of the facility is 20 beds, which are shared with elders and physically disabled individuals. That leaves a grand total of four beds to meet the growing seniors population's long-term care needs of the Nahendeh district and, in fact, the entire Deh Cho region.

Mr. Speaker, there are already 16 occupants at the facility and an increasing seniors population in Nahendeh. Where does this government think to put the elderly when they require long-term care? Does this government believe they can ship the elderly all over the Northwest Territories to access other underutilized long-term care facilities? I don't think there is one Member sitting here that would appreciate being shipped to a different community with people you don't know, far away from your family, if you should ever need long-term care. Mr. Speaker, it is the responsibility of this government to support the physical, mental and social well-being of the residents of the Northwest Territories, and this includes the elderly.

Mr. Speaker, I am not asking for a new facility but to expand the existing facility to meet their future needs. Mahsi cho.

---Applause

Fort Simpson Long-term Care Facility
Item 3: Members' Statements

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The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Menicoche. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes, Mr. McLeod.

Carnival Season In The Beaufort-delta
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1951

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, later this week I will be going back to Inuvik and everyone in the Beaufort-Delta will be gearing up for the carnival season. Carnival season is a great opportunity for residents of the area to gather, meet old friends and make some new ones. It is also a chance for bragging rights to see who has the fastest dogs and the fastest snowmobiles. There will be many feasts and old-time dances. This has always been a special time of the year. It announces the passing of a very long winter and the coming of spring.

Carnival season, Mr. Speaker, includes the Mad Trapper Rendezvous held in Aklavik and the Peel River Jamboree in Fort McPherson; the Mackenzie Jamboree in Tsiigehtchic; the Beluga Jamboree in Tuktoyaktuk; and, finally, the Muskrat Jamboree in Inuvik.

Mr. Speaker, the Muskrat Jamboree is dedicating this year's carnival to the victims of family violence and accepting donations on their behalf. They will also be making a donation to the Inuvik Transition House Society. Members of the Accountability and Oversight Committee -- or AOC, for short, which I hope to be a part of today -- will also be in Tuk...

---Applause

...for part of the Beluga Jamboree. We look forward to watching some of the festivities and if given the chance, we will get to see some Members of AOC doing some fancy footwork in an old-time dance. Thank you.

---Applause

Carnival Season In The Beaufort-delta
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1951

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. McLeod. Item 3, Members' statements. The honourable Member for Tu Nedhe, Mr. Villeneuve.

Application Of The GNWT Affirmative Action Policy
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1951

Robert Villeneuve

Robert Villeneuve Tu Nedhe

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. My Member's statement today is about the application of the affirmative action policy in the GNWT. Mr. Speaker, I have raised this issue several times during this Third Session and feel the need to continue to raise this issue, given the circumstances around this issue and that the consolidation of the human resource function in the government is currently in the development stage and I cannot see a better time to address this ongoing concern.

Mr. Speaker, the affirmative action report published in 2004 says that corporate human resources implemented the Management Assignment Program, or MAP program, in June 2003, and goes on to say that this succession program will provide an opportunity for employees to demonstrate management and leadership skills. The MAP program will prepare affirmative action employees for progressive roles at the management level.

Mr. Speaker, Minister Roland invited me and others to let him know if there is a breach of policy taking place. The evidence of a breach of policy of the affirmative action policy is clear; it is supposed to apply to all programs in the GNWT and it does not. The application forms for the Management Assignment Program -- or MAP program -- do not even mention affirmative action status. Minister Roland stated that the MAP program applies to everybody in the GNWT workforce.

I have to question this and I feel that the MAP acronym should more appropriately mean missing aboriginals program.

Application Of The GNWT Affirmative Action Policy
Item 3: Members' Statements

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Some Hon. Members

Hear! Hear!

---Applause

Application Of The GNWT Affirmative Action Policy
Item 3: Members' Statements

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Robert Villeneuve

Robert Villeneuve Tu Nedhe

As the 2004 affirmative action report gives us stats for the first round of the MAP program, of the 101 applicants, 26 were accepted into the program. Of these, seven were female, three were aboriginal and six were indigenous non-aboriginal. The remaining 10 that were not mentioned must fall completely outside of the affirmative action policy and it appears that there are no other indigenous aboriginal persons qualified for this program.

Mr. Speaker, given this information and the fact that we have some departments that have no indigenous aboriginal senior mangers like Aboriginal Affairs and Transportation, and the public statement from officials that the affirmative action policy is on its way out, and the failure of the people responsible to form the Affirmative Action Advisory Committee as required, and the recent comments from the Minister that affirmative action is still

going to be there but we are just going to call it something else, tells me, Mr. Speaker, that the affirmative action policy is all but dead already and that we are just being asked to sit back and watch that happen.

Application Of The GNWT Affirmative Action Policy
Item 3: Members' Statements

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The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

Thank you, Mr. Villeneuve. Your time for your Member's statement has expired.

Application Of The GNWT Affirmative Action Policy
Item 3: Members' Statements

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Robert Villeneuve

Robert Villeneuve Tu Nedhe

Mr. Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

Application Of The GNWT Affirmative Action Policy
Item 3: Members' Statements

Page 1952

The Speaker

The Speaker Paul Delorey

The Member is seeking unanimous consent to conclude his statement. Are there any nays? There are no nays. You may conclude you statement, Mr. Villeneuve.