Paul Bickford
Northern News Services

Hay River (Sep 09/02) - Karen Thomas has may have resigned as chief of the West Point First Nation, but she certainly has not gone quietly.

Having resigned as chief of West Point First Nation, Karen Thomas has prepared a list of problems she sees with the band council. - Paul Bickford/NNSL photo

Thomas quit Aug. 30 after four years on the job. She has launched a petition requesting the whole council resign and the band office be closed until elections in late October. She also wants to see a non-band member get the job as administrator.

Among other things, she blasts the council for nepotism and financial mismanagement, warning the band is heading towards bankruptcy.

Thomas said ongoing hostility between the prominent Cayen and Thomas families is a sore point.

"It is always like a flame burning," she said.

So far, her concerns are being dismissed by band councillors and the interim chief, her uncle Leon Thomas.

The council consists of Ted Cayen, Lucy Cayen, Trudy Cayen and Leon Thomas. The band administrator is Wendy Cayen.

Wendy Cayen said she doesn't know why the former chief is calling for a non-member as band administrator, noting she is training for the position.

"If any jobs are available, our community members come first," Cayen notes.

West Point is a small First Nation of 69 members on the western end of Vale Island.

Thomas says she fears the band is headed for bankruptcy and it would be best "if we shut everything down now."

Her financial concerns includes loans made to band members. While noting loans are common and she once received such assistance, she believes they should stop until the band receives more funding. The band will receive $107,000 in core funding this year from the federal Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development.

Advice not heeded

Councillor Lucy Cayen says the chief is supposed to take advice from council. "But she was making decisions on her own."

Still, she says, Thomas's decision to resign came as a surprise to the council. "We didn't expect that."

Leon Thomas, who was previously chief for four years, rejected the idea of council resigning and closing the band office, saying the band has to move forward. "If she wants out, we have to keep going," he said.

He said he believes Karen Thomas may have just got tired of the job, calling it "a lot of headaches." As for his niece's charge of nepotism, the interim chief said he doesn't think that happens, "Because we try to make decisions for whoever needs help."

The interim chief, while admitting the band's finances are not great, said a recent $5,000 bank loan will carry it over until more core funding arrives.