Daniel MacIsaac
Northern News Services

NNSL (Mar 26/99) - A legislative vote on former premier Don Morin's motion to appeal the electoral-boundaries ruling was both tight and revealing.

Five members voted Wednesday in favour of the motion, two members opposed it and 12 abstained.

Abstainers included Eastern Arctic MLAs who will soon depart for Nunavut, as well as Premier Jim Antoine and his cabinet ministers -- including Yellowknife Frame Lake MLA Charles Dent.

"It's become a tradition during the last two assemblies that cabinet ministers don't vote on motions that affect the direction of the government," explained Yellowknife Frame Lake MLA Charles Dent.

MLAs supporting Morin argued that de Weerdt's 26-day deadline was simply too short a time in which to decide such a weighty issue and that the ruling was also quickly polarizing the NWT's aboriginal and non-aboriginal communities.

MacKenzie Delta MLA David Krutko backed the motion, as did Thebacha's Michael Miltenberger and North Slave's James Rabesca. But the big surprise support came from Yellowknife North MLA Roy Erasmus.

Erasmus conceded the decision would not be popular with the majority of his constituents, but he said he was trying to do the right thing.

"This issue goes way beyond Yellowknife," he said, "We can't deprive people of their right to vote, but we must also look at aboriginal rights."

Absent from the chamber during the vote was Yellowknife South MLA Seamus Henry, who had earlier argued his opposition to the motion. He said not all aboriginal leaders fear the boundary changes.

"These are some of the leaders who I listen to, because they are not scared of democracy," he said. "They are not scared of all people in the NWT having an equal voice in their legislature."

Henry said afterward that because of Erasmus' support and Vince Steen's abstention, the motion's success was a given even had he voted.

Jake Ootes voted against the motion as did Jane Groenewegen, who argued the legislature may be facing such a short deadline through its own fault -- because it overruled the recommendations of its electoral boundaries commission in November.

But Ootes, MLA for Yellowknife Centre, also echoed the other MLAs in expressing his hope that the contentious issue would not drive a permanent wedge between members.