Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I too would like to talk about the devolution process and the lack of coordination, consultation and respect that our Aboriginal leadership should get from a government-to-government relationship.
The Gwich’in Tribal Council submitted a letter dated April 19
th
last year to the government on issues that
they felt had to be discussed prior to a devolution agreement-in-principle going forward. The agreement was signed, as we know, last September, with no consultation and now I’ve received a letter from the Premier to Mr. Nerysoo, some seven months after they received the letter, outlining their concerns and issues that they felt had to be addressed through the devolution process.
Consultation, negotiations and involvement mean sitting at a table and being full participants in those negotiations, not simply observers sitting on the sidelines or being consulted every once in awhile. I think it’s fundamental to improve the relationship between the Government of the Northwest Territories and its Aboriginal leaders by way of formulating a meeting ASAP, even on this weekend or whatever is coming up, to find a way to improve that relationship.
The relationship between the Aboriginal leaders and the Aboriginal communities in the Northwest
Territories is at an all-time low in the history of the Northwest Territories and its political development. I believe this government has done more harm to that relationship through this agreement-in-principle and trying to push something forward for the sake of trying to come up with an agreement without really understanding the implications and effects on the people of the Northwest Territories and the Aboriginal leadership.
At the appropriate time I will be having questions for the Premier regarding his correspondence between himself and Mr. Nerysoo.