We understand the territorial government is negotiating with doctors over pay. We also understand doctors are in a position of power: they are in demand.

Nurses are also in short supply and high demand worldwide.

The root of the medical staff shortage problem began years ago when the federal government decided to cut medicare costs. The idea was to decrease the number of students attending medical schools and nursing programs, lowering future payroll and equipment costs.

Sadly, there was no thought put to the numbers of people requiring treatment when the labour pool dried up.

Stanton Territorial applied the same fiscal logic when it closed wards due to lack of staff then failed to re-open them as scheduled.

Healthcare costs and patients were shifted away from the hospital. It brought the deficit down but hurt service levels.

The nationwide scarcity of medical staff cannot be laid at the feet of the territorial government but it is their problem nonetheless, Health Minister Michael Miltenberger's in particular.

He has shown himself to be just the kind of ineffective minister he attacked when he was an ordinary member. Now he's the one ordering studies instead of solutions, setting the stage for failure rather than recovery.

From Miltenberger's cool response to repeated calls for action on staff recruitment and retention, he appears to think he can play regional politics, bashing Yellowknife by being tough with Stanton. Instead, he's avoiding the issues that threaten the health of all Northerners, including those in Fort Smith, of which he is MLA. He's also damaging the integrity of Premier Stephen Kakfwi's government.

Most disturbing and revealing is the flawed thinking behind Miltenberger's comment to News/North on hiring medical staff: "We're (NWT) not in a position to be 20 per cent higher than everybody else in the world."

Every employer in Yellowknife knows the cost of living is at least 20 to 25 per cent higher than the South, even more outside the city.

No wonder we can't get nurses North! Our recruitment and retention strategy slogan is 'Take a pay cut and come North' or 'Long hours and low pay at -40.'

We can only hope cabinet will sit the minister down and explain the economic facts to him. If that kind of thinking remains unchanged, there may be few doctors and nurses to worry about or no health system to fix.

We surely won't need a study to tell us why.

Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News

We can only hope the Government of Nunavut's decision to take over construction of the Rankin Inlet Regional Health Centre will help expedite the process.

However, that being said, it is time for Kivalliq beneficiaries to start demanding answers from the Kivalliq Inuit Association (KIA) concerning the Sakku Investment Corp.

Beneficiaries have the right to know why the Sakku Investment Corp. could not finalize a deal with the Nunavut government on construction of the new health care facility.

This is your regional health facility being built with your money.

Why, despite its claims to the contrary, can the Sakku Investment Corp. not get its financial house in order?

What are the other "factors" involved in the KIA's decision to replace the entire Sakku Investment Corp.'s board of directors with members of its own board of directors?

Why did it take the KIA so long to intervene in health centre negotiations with the Nunavut government, especially in light of the fact Finance Minister Kelvin Ng had publicly stated the government's patience was wearing thin?

In fact, Ng said on the record had the KIA made this decision a mere 30 days ago, a deal could still have been reached on the health-centre project.

Why has a former Sakku top gun, a key figure in health centre negotiations with the Nunavut government, been placed on leave with pay instead of outright dismissal if the KIA is dissatisfied with his performance?

How much of beneficiaries' money has the Sakku Investment Corp. lost during the past few years?

Are there ANY areas where Sakku is showing a substantial return on its investments?

For too long now the answers to these questions have been denied to the media under the guise of only having to answer to beneficiaries.

If that's the case, it's time for beneficiaries to speak up and demand answers to these questions.

This is your money. It represents a substantial portion of any formula devised to provide future economic prosperity in the Kivalliq region.

Why should Kivalliq beneficiaries be any different than Southern taxpayers when it comes to the right of knowing how their money is being spent?

If you can't get the answers you want from these organizations contact your local MLA, a number of whom in the Kivalliq region are territorial ministers.

They're elected by you to serve you.

It's your land and your money. You have the right to know where it's going.

And, the time for getting those answers is now!

Editorial Comment
John Barker
Inuvik Drum

Inuvik lives for me as a kaleidoscope of snapshots. One of the most vivid that will resonate with me for a long, long time is standing on the shore of the mighty Mackenzie River last Saturday morning, watching a flotilla of small boats head out in miserable weather for Aklavik.

The Gwich'in and Inuvialuit were gathering to bury three of their own: Doug Irish, Larry Semmler and Charlie Meyook. Northerners, aboriginal and non-aboriginal, look after their own.

Hundreds of Gwich'in, Inuvialuit and non-aboriginals travelled by river and by air from Inuvik, from McPherson, from Tsiigehtchic, from the Yukon, from Alaska and from the South for the funerals at All Saints Anglican Church in Aklavik, on the site of the original Anglican Cathedral of the Arctic. The women volunteered to cook the community feast; the men hunted caribou and dug graves, all giving aid and comfort to their brothers and sister in Aklavik.

By the time you read these words, I will have hopped a jet plane and be back doing my usual job as a news editor in our main newsroom in Yellowknife after spending six weeks on the Mackenzie Delta. Five of those weeks were spent working as a reporter and photographer in our News/North bureau here, while the last week has been spent as the acting editor of the Inuvik Drum.

This is a vast and open land, where two of the highest virtues practised are tolerance and respect. I witnessed many examples of both, but the two that come readily to mind occurred on difficult and controversial stories.

My first assignment here was to fly into Tuktoyaktuk for a story involving allegations of police brutality by some officers from the hamlet's RCMP detachment. A number of things struck me. Taking off one's footwear at the hamlet council meeting as a sign of respect (and practicality to keep the floors free of Delta mud), which is also common here in Inuvik.

Nobody tried to "spin" me on the story. The alleged victim and his wife invited me into their home for tea. One of the accused Mounties, knowing this wasn't going to be a good news story, still managed to chat graciously with me later at the airport. Mayor Eddie Dillon, in some ways the man in the middle, offered me a ride to the airport in his pickup with his daughter and grandchildren after the meeting.

I would have a similar experience my last week in Inuvik, covering a joint meeting of the Inuvik Indian Band and Nihtat Gwich'in Council in the wake of critical press coverage by Inuvik Drum of their postponed election. Again, no one tried to "spin" me on the story. No one went behind closed doors. No one asked the press to leave or gave us the cold shoulder.

Chief James Firth, who has shouldered much of the criticism, candidly admitted, "There was a big mistake made. We're here to do it right ... blame me or whatever ... we buggered it up. Let's do it right."

Firth also noted the council's process, while flawed at times, was at least "transparent."

Indeed. There's many lessons, many virtues, practised here that would do well to be practised everywhere.

Mahsi Cho, Inuvik.

Editorial Comment
Derek Neary
Deh Cho Drum

The Liidlii Kue First Nation's announcement that it is becoming more pro-development, or industry friendly, should not come as a complete surprise.

The band's position is not a departure from statements that Chief Rita Cli has made over the past few years. Although the LKFN, like the Deh Cho First Nations, has been accused of being "anti-development" by some, Cli has repeatedly declared that the LKFN is not opposed to development, but wants to be in control of development.

Granted, an argument could be made that Cli's words are nothing more than rhetoric. To this point there has been little action to substantiate that the LKFN is truly engaging industry. There was a "close call" last October when the LKFN proclaimed that it was ready to sign the Aboriginal Pipeline Group's Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for a Mackenzie Valley pipeline, as the Acho Dene Koe First Nation in Fort Liard had already done. The Fort Simpson band had polled its membership and found the majority were in favour of endorsing the MOU.

That announcement sent shockwaves rippling through the Deh Cho. However, the LKFN delayed signing and, after a consultant condemned the MOU, the band reconsidered.

Regardless, Cli has been one of the most vocal leaders in favour of creating a Deh Cho Economic Corporation, which is now close to becoming a reality.

"We've got the interim measures and all these things in place, now get on with business. You can't be afraid, you've got to go forward," Cli said at a regional economic development conference a year ago.

The Mackenzie Delta Producers Group expects to spend close to $250 million in its pipeline "project definition" phase, involving community consultations and preliminary studies. Who wouldn't want a share of that?

The LKFN's membership comprises business-minded individuals and those who are enticed by the prospect of high-paying jobs. On the other hand, there are those who are skeptical of development at this point and want more agreements in place before it proceeds. Therefore band council has been trying to manage the tug of war between both sides while not overlooking the Deh Cho Process.

There are pipeline and non-pipeline related opportunities for all First Nations to harness if they choose. It can be done without forcing the Deh Cho's hand at the negotiating table.

The conflict, at this point, arises over a proposed river seismic program. It's an issue that rouses emotion in Deh Cho assistant negotiator Herb Norwegian's voice. Based on years of working with chiefs and harvesters, he's dead set against the project. Yet the Liidlii Kue First Nation is conditionally in favour of it.

Hopefully this isn't an early indication of the divisiveness development could create in the Deh Cho.

There was an error in the article "Peggy 'hot boning' beef" (Yellowknifer, Sept 20).

Margaret Kent purchased the Ferry Brothers assets privately for an undisclosed amount.

The purchase was not made by Eden Roc Mineral Corp. as reported.

Yellowknifer apologizes for this error. and any inconvenience it may have caused.