Thank you, Mr. Speaker. When we sought nomination and put our names forward for the MLA for our riding, we knew perfectly well, through speaking with our elders and people, they said, you're working for us. That's what your job is, to work for us and do the best you can in that term.
I sat down with many elders and they said, you, as an MLA, you're like an arrowhead. The people are like that bow. Whatever issue we talk about, we'll pull the bow and you shoot. Power to hang you and the arrowhead goes to that issue. Don't be scared, because you're the voice of the people. But if you speak for yourself, that's your voice. You speak for us. Of course, I've had some phone calls; I've made some phone calls. It's not an issue for us yet in the Sahtu.
What I understand is that we need the tools in the Northwest Territories. Of course, I heard, and I talked to people, are we writing our own conditions to our employment as an MLA, or are we giving ourselves the authority to make our own laws to decide on.
I think we no longer need the permission slip from Ottawa to tell us how to live. We've done that through devolution. We don't need the permission slip anymore from Ottawa. That's what we've been saying for a long, long time.
I've been thinking about this, what do we need to do? My cousins in Nunavut and Yukon have that option, have that tool, have that authority. But for us here, we still need Ottawa to say okay to us.
I don't think any one of us sitting around here or any one of us listening expected us to have this discussion when we first got elected, when we first sat down in Caucus. It never even crossed our minds. I don't think the electors thought, well, give yourself another few months, a year, extend your term. That never came across. It was the furthest thing from my mind. However, to speak to the principle of the bill is to give us authority and the principle.
Mr. Speaker, the decision has been put upon us, certainly having it read in the House on Friday and making phone calls on the weekend and talking to people. I've seen, in my 10-year term, decisions made quicker than this. This is not new. Some bigger decisions have been made. We talked about the devolution file and I wasn't a happy camper with the devolution file. Let me tell you. I wasn't a happy camper on that file. It's done, beginning April 1st.
Again, I haven't heard much from the Sahtu people. I certainly heard from constituents outside the Sahtu and I appreciate their e-mails to me. I even had one this morning. So the passion is out there. We've been very limited with our public consultation, if you want to call it public consultation.
We're talking about extending our term. Every one of us coming to this office is highly ethical and to be called otherwise is not justice. We work for the people. What fashion of democracy is determined at the end of the day? We stand here because people sent us here. We need the tools to train our own future. We're doing that through devolution. We have to have the tools. We need the authority. Along with that comes the responsibility. Today we're asking for that permission to create our own destiny. Do we still need the permission slip from Ottawa?
Mr. Speaker, I thought about this and asked myself as an MLA. I talked to the people in the Sahtu. You know what, Mr. Speaker? It is true when we put our name down and got elected, we said it's a four-year term. Some say it's too long and some say it's too fast, depending on what side of the bed you get up in the morning. But it is true; we work for our people.
As an MLA, this is a very, very soul-searching task. You feel so strongly about it. People feel strongly that we did sign up for a four-year term contract. As a person, you can always resign and say, call a snap election in your riding. Let the people decide, if you feel very strongly about it. If people feel strongly about it, give it back to them. It's a privilege to be here. This is no entitlement. It's a real honour to be here to represent your people. Some of the people are not here today. We'll decide in the Sahtu how we want to go. We live up there. It's our life. We'll decide how we will do it. It's our land; it's our people. If that's the way they feel, then I'm okay with it because it's a privilege. It's an honour to represent them. I don't take this job very lightly.
I see the old-timers put their X. We are good people. We offer our service. They can take it away like that. That's what I want to say. In the Sahtu we will decide our future. With this motion here, we ask for the tools. We do not need a permission slip from Ottawa. We need to do it ourselves. I don't know how that will be; only God knows how the future will determine ourselves. I'm not the boss. That's what the old people tell us: work together. Sometimes that's very hard because I make it hard and very easy. That's what I wanted to say on this motion here. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.