Dick Smith owns and operates the Eastern Arctic Armoury in Iqaluit. He called the firearms legislation an embarrassment and said the federal government has lied about hidden costs in the firearms registry from the start. Smith is shown here on hold with the firearms business hotline. - Kerry McCluskey/NNSL photo

Smith, the owner of the Eastern Arctic Armoury in Iqaluit for the last 13 years, has to phone the hotline every time a customer purchases a gun from him. A firearms employee named Stacey finally answers.

Stacey, who immediately refuses to speak to the media, needs to verify the customer purchasing the gun is in fact the same person whose name appears on the possession/acquisition certificate.

In this case, it's a unilingual Inuk from Arctic Bay. Smith passes him the phone and Stacey begins to ask him questions in English. He doesn't understand. Luckily, his son is bilingual and has accompanied him to the Armoury. Stacey gets the information she's looking for and the pair leave with the gun's registration transferred to the new owner. The entire process takes about 45 minutes, but what would have happened if the man's son had not joined him?

"I have enough Inuktitut that I can help transfer the registration," said Smith. "I know what questions they're going to ask. It's better though if there's an Inuk with them."

Deep, deep pockets

Long waiting periods, heaps of paperwork and a lack of Inuktitut speaking employees are just some of the inefficiencies Smith regularly encounters in trying to deal with the federal government and their gun legislation.

But for Smith, what makes the Firearms Act even harder to tolerate is the gross amount of money the federal Department of Justice squandered on implementing the program over the last seven years.

Last Tuesday afternoon in the House of Commons, Auditor General Sheila Fraser tabled her report on the costs of implementing the gun program. Fraser told MPs that the federal justice department would spend $629 million by the end of the current fiscal year. That figure will rise to at least $1 billion by 2005. Only $140 million of that will ever be recovered in fees.

In 1995, the justice department forecast they would spend just $119 million and would recover $117 million through licensing and registration fees.

"What I find obscene is the money they packed into it. It could have gone to so many more things," said Smith.

"Health care is underfunded in Nunavut and people are dying as a result. Can you imagine what $100 million could do for health care in Nunavut?"

Smith believes the government lied from the start and has always hidden the true costs of implementing the program.

Okalik not surprised

Nunavut's premier and Justice Minister Paul Okalik was completely unsurprised by Fraser's report.

Calling the legislation a "boondoggle" and a "nightmare," Okalik estimated very little of the money ever made its way into Nunavut.

"I don't believe very much (was spent here) because the office here has been shut down for some time," said Okalik. "I doubt much of it was spent here."

The Canadian Firearms Centre closed Nunavut's Area Office in Iqaluit in February because of staffing problems.

While a replacement manager was hired in October, the office remains closed while the employee undergoes training.

Reserving comment on whether past or present justice ministers should step down, Okalik said it was up to MPs to hold their government accountable.

"I'd rather they look at the legislation and get rid of it rather than trying to find someone to blame. The law is to blame," he said.