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Tin Can no man's land
Yellowknifer - Wednesday, September 2, 2009

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Five years ago, when Tin Can Hill was still solidly slated for future development, and city councillor Mark Heyck was a long ways from achieving his dream of preserving it forever as a dog park and hiker's hill, Heyck pointed to the enduring wisdom of Vancouver's civic fathers for creating Stanley Park.

Leading the charge to re-zone Tin Can Hill from growth management to parks and recreation, Heyck must view himself in a similar vein. He's almost there. A couple more council votes will ensure Tin Can will never be burdened by bulldozers and real estate agents – unless they're out there walking their dogs, of course.

Fortunately at city council last week, there were enough municipal politicians wary enough of pressing forward with a vote that there will yet be another debate before all is said and done. We owe that to councillors David McCann, David Wind and Paul Falvo, and tie-breaker Mayor Gord Van Tighem.

While we appreciate Heyck's passion for protecting green spaces in the city, removing Tin Can Hill entirely from development plans would be a particularly reckless move in a city with a real lack of available land for residential development. Where else can the city build other than the last couple of remaining phases at Niven Lake?

That's why Tin Can Hill was included in the 2004 General Plan inventory; that's why it's acknowledged in the city's own Metroquest study into long-range growth needs as the logical location for future residential development. Should council ban development on Tin Can right now, it will be against the advice from members of the city's own Smart Growth committee, which has yet to complete a study of development there.

Tin Can Hill is approximately 100 hectares – around a quarter the size of the aforementioned Stanley Park. But unlike Stanley Park, there is no actual municipal infrastructure there to service it: no maintained trails, no street lights, no police or bylaw officers making patrols.

If council votes against any development there, what they're really voting for is no man's land – for more broken glass and litter, for a place where dog owners let their pets defecate with impunity, and for more squatters to set up tents.

Levelling Tin Can and dumping a bunch of trailers there would be a terrible crime, but if development is nixed entirely it will remain the domain of few and enjoyed by fewer still.

Let's not forget that this city does need places to put workers and their families. When the economy is again red hot, as it was a few years ago, there will be plenty of calls for more homes and apartments.

Therefore a compromise of limited development with tax dollars created to pay for real parks and trails makes the most sense.

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A needle in the H1N1 haystack
Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News - Wednesday, September 2, 2009

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While top Canadian health officials have been promoting immunization against the next wave of H1N1 (swine flu), there are many health professionals around the world who refuse to endorse or receive the vaccine themselves.

The estimated number of Canadian health workers who get vaccinated against seasonal flu tops out at the world average of 60 per cent.

But the number of health professionals in many countries who accept flu immunization shots are far lower, with American professionals routinely coming in at about 40 per cent and those in Britain known to register around 20 per cent.

And, even more fear surrounds the H1N1 vaccine.

It's already been reported in the British Medical Journal that more than 50 per cent of health workers in Hong Kong have refused the vaccination, as well as 30 per cent of British nurses.

In short, health workers around the planet have grave misgivings on both the effectiveness and the safety of the H1N1 vaccine.

That's led to about half the world's health workers balking at the same vaccine we're urged to accept.

This is extremely concerning in the Kivalliq, which, to date, has accounted for 48 per cent of Nunavut's 560 confirmed cases of H1N1.

Add to that the evidence of aboriginals being more susceptible to the virus, and we could be in for a nasty flu season if a second wave of H1N1 does, in fact, strike.

The disparity between the number of confirmed cases during the first wave in other countries compared to Canada is bad enough.

A total of 24 in every 100,000 Canadians have been infected by H1N1, compared to 11 in the United States and nine in Mexico.

But what's truly alarming is the infection rate among aboriginals.

According to published reports, First Nations people in Manitoba have an infection rate of 130 per 100,000 people, while, in Nunavut, the number of Inuit infected by H1N1 swells to a staggering 1,070 in 100,000.

Nunavut's Department of Health has been saying for months it doesn't want to needlessly alarm people over H1N1, but these numbers are alarming!

They're especially alarming considering how many health workers - rightly or wrongly - have little or no faith in the H1N1 vaccine.

So, what's a person to do when a local health-care professional ramps up the public relations on the benefits of getting the H1N1 vaccination?

With what we know right now, and the almost continual mutation of the virus, the vaccination seems to be a 50-50 proposition at best.

A fact most of the world's health professionals seem to already know.

There is also evidence, yet to be substantiated, that there could be a genetic component at play in the infection rates being seen in Nunavut.

If so, the vaccine could prove itself to be far more of a benefit to Nunavut's minority population than Inuit.

As it looks now, good hygiene, including frequent washing of hands, proper diet and exercise, could very well be the best needle in the H1N1 haystack when it comes to effective vaccines in the Kiv this year.

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Knock down those doors
NWT News/North - Monday, August 31, 2009

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Open government is a crucial pillar of democracy.

Fort Smith town council has struggled to understand that concept, but it must grasp the idea.

In June, a majority of councillors passed a bylaw that would have permitted them to operate behind closed doors at their own whims.

Private discussions could be held on any matter "which council or its committees agree, by resolution, to discuss at an in-camera meeting."

That sets the stage for poor government. Thankfully the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs agrees and the department intervened, advising council to revise the bylaw.

It's generally understood, and largely accepted, that municipal councils are within their bounds to conduct some business confidentially, namely legal issues and personnel matters.

But what happens when a personnel matter balloons into something alarming, something that the public ought to know about because mayor and council may have mishandled the affair?

That's essentially what Fort Smith is now examining. Councillor Brenda Johnson blew the whistle on what she felt was financial mismanagement pertaining to former longtime senior administrative officer Roy Scott's contracts with the town.

Johnson made the relevant accountant's report public, providing it to the local newspaper. Indeed, a look at the document does reveal some startling figures that beg for explanation: Scott reportedly received a $140,00 signing bonus in 2006 and a $20,641 bonus in 2001; there was $52,842 for education leave in 2002 that was never taken; salary payments in 2002 and 2003 that exceeded contract amounts by close to $11,500.

Johnson's fellow councillors are slapping her with disciplinary action and want her to apologize for breaching council's code of conduct. If there's no apology, they want her to resign.

In addition, the disciplinary committee has recommended that she should no longer be allowed to attend future in-camera meetings.

So what exactly should Johnson have done? Been quiet?

It certainly seems that she's raised an issue worthy of some serious consideration. After all, council, in a necessary move signalling accountability, has approved a forensic audit of the town's finances. Council had been preparing to move ahead with a forensic audit shortly after Scott was dismissed in May.

However, Mayor Peter Martselos expressed reluctance to go ahead with such an audit, saying it would be too costly. He contended that a cheaper financial review would achieve the same goal for less money.

Fortunately council wanted to dig deeper, despite the cost, and voted to move ahead with the forensic audit at a special meeting on Aug. 25. That meeting was open to the public, also a positive development. To keep the momentum going in the right direction, the results of this audit should be made readily available to the public.

As well, to ensure residents aren't left in the dark on too much council business done in-camera, the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs should adopt an access to information policy for communities similar to what exists for the territorial government. It would be a means of recourse for frustrated citizens.

After all, secrecy is no ally to good government.

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Hospital needs first aid
Nunavut News/North - Monday, August 31, 2009

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When Qikiqtani General Hospital opened less than two years ago amid great fanfare, it was touted as a modern facility with the capacity to meet the territory's health care needs.

But shiny new facilities and equipment are useless without the appropriate personnel required to staff them.

Last week we reported two cases where the hospital seems to have failed in its attempt to serve Iqalummiut. These incidents should be an embarrassment to Nunavut MP and Minister of Health Leona Aglukkaq.

In one incident, a woman in labour expecting her fourth child went to the hospital. She was sent home after being seen by two doctors despite traditional knowledge that women giving birth for the second, third or fourth time (or more) tend to have quicker deliveries.

She gave birth about 10 minutes after arriving home. Fortunately, both mother and daughter are fine.

In another incident, a 52 year-old woman tumbled down the stairs at the Nova Inn after midnight on Aug. 9 and sustained head injuries. An ambulance was called and she was taken to the emergency room. While there, she reportedly caused a disturbance. At about 3 a.m. hospital staff asked police officers who happened to be at the hospital on another matter to remove her from the hospital and to bring her back when she was sober. It's unclear whether she was medically assessed prior to her arrest. As Supt. Howard Eaton put it, "She was brought in by ambulance so we're assuming that somebody looked at her."

When officers called the hospital 12 hours later and asked if they could bring her back, staff told the police the emergency room was busy and had no beds. At 5:20 p.m. on Aug. 9, RCMP staff monitoring the woman noticed she was in medical distress.

She was taken to Qikiqtani General, medevaced to Ottawa and died in hospital Aug. 14. According to the RCMP, her death was the result of the injuries she had sustained prior to her arrest.

RCMP in Winnipeg are investigating the case, as it's being considered that the death occurred while she was in police custody.

But the case deserves a full Nunavut coroner's inquest to determine what went wrong and how it can be fixed. The ability of Qikiqtani General Hospital to provide emergency health care for Iqaluit and the rest of the territory needs to be examined.

These incidents raise concerns that there may not be enough staff and the staff that is there may be overworked or lacking appropriate training.

Qikiqtani has nine emergency room nurse positions, three of which are vacant.

The hospital may need emergency attention of its own before someone else in medical distress slips through the cracks.

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Prime real estate
Yellowknifer - Friday, August 28, 2009

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While some entities like the Bank of Montreal and the Workers' Safety and Compensation Commission are fleeing downtown, or hoping to escape, it's good to know the federal government still considers the city centre a good place in which to invest.

The Department of Indian and Northern Affairs plans to move into a yet-to-be-built five-storey office building across the street from the federal government's downtown crown jewel, the Greenstone Building.

The new facility will replace the aging Gallery building, which has been more or less vacant for the last four years. The property is owned by Toronto-based Dundee Real Estate Investment Trust, landlord to a considerable portion of Yellowknife's prime office space.

The new digs are certain to add some viability to the downtown core, which has suffered in recent years.

Nice, shiny, state-of-the-art buildings are inviting and full of office workers in need of nearby places to shop and do lunch. Naturally, small business owners want to be situated close to these buildings, which further enhances downtown's viability.

What would make this whole scenario better is more attention paid to developers or landlords based right here in Yk.

Hopefully, the feds will think about that next time they go house hunting.

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Make pay phone calls free
Yellowknifer - Friday, August 28, 2009

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NorthwesTel has raised the cost of local calls made by pay phone to 50 cents from 25 cents as of Aug. 18.

Instead of an increase, NorthwesTel, which is owned by Bell, should be making pay phones free, or at least decreasing the price of a call. For several years, Bell has been charging Northerners a fee of 75 cents a month for 911 service, a service which isn't provided.

Instead of fighting the $6 million civil class action lawsuit, launched by Yellowknife resident James Anderson, it's time Bell acknowledges it has been unfairly charging Northerners and make amends. Making pay phones in the territory free is one such way for the company to make retribution.

With cell phones as popular as they are today, it is hard to believe NorthwesTel would be making any money from the 86 pay phones reported to be scattered around Yellowknife. The fact NorthwesTel refuses to disclose how much revenue the pay phones generate would seem to support that. It's not like there is competition, as NorthwesTel has admitted it has a monopoly on the small market.

The doubling of pay phone rates may not seem like much to NorthwesTel, but the company would be forgetting that to the impoverished who cannot afford a cell phone, an extra 25 cents makes a big difference.

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A case for a strategic plan
Editorial Comment
Roxanna Thompson
Deh Cho Drum - Thursday, August 27, 2009

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Liidlii Kue First Nation engaged in a constructive exercise last week.

The leadership, along with the band's employees and all interested members, gathered over two days for a strategic planning session. As Chief Jim Antoine explained, the session was designed to get a general view from the membership assessing where the band is at.

Discussions during the session centered on looking at the issues the band is involved in and determining their position in those areas. The goal for the session and the follow-up meetings that are planned is to create an action plan for the current leadership.

Antoine was fulfilling a commitment he made shortly after being elected. While talking to Deh Cho Drum after the election, Antoine said he would be using a traditional approach for making decisions that would involve gathering feedback from elders and band members.

It's hard to think of another process that's more inclusive and involves more consultation with members than inviting the whole membership to participate in a strategic planning session.

The Deh Cho is no stranger to political turmoil within First Nations. When band members rise up against their respective leadership the cause can almost inevitably be traced back to a lack of communication.

Time and time again petitions organized by disgruntled band members make reference to decisions the leadership made or failed to make - and, invariably, the members feel they weren't consulted.

A well developed plan can be the basis for a successful leadership. If the issues the band is dealing with, like land claim negotiations or housing, are clearly laid out, decisions can then be made on how the band wants to address them. From there the chief and council can develop a timeline of what they want to accomplish, and when.

It's well worth the membership's time to participate in this process. A strategic plan is a tool they can use to keep the leadership on track and compliant to the people's wishes. If any decision emerging from the band council chambers seems suspect all that may be required is a glance at the strategic plan to see if it complies with the mandate.

The current leadership has the opportunity to set a timely example for the Deh Cho. They are already on the right track. All that's needed is for them to carry through with the remaining strategic meetings and produce a document that all band members can access.

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Where was the audience?
Editorial Comment
Andrew Rankin
Inuvik Drum - Thursday, August 27, 2009

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If you were among the group that gathered at the Midnight Sun Recreation Complex on Saturday night, I'm willing to bet you had a great time.

I sure enjoyed the final night of the End of the Road music festival.

Let's consider the admission price of $5. Now let's consider the main stage entertainment that played on both Friday and Saturday night from about 9 p.m. to 2 a.m.

I'll be honest and say that before I attended Saturday's show I wouldn't have been able to tell you one song produced by any of the three lead acts, Leonard Adam, Yukon Jack and Doug and the Slugs. But after it was all said and done, I was utterly shocked by the quality of the entertainment, particularly the range of music and the energetic performances.

It's too bad not nearly enough people showed up to support what was truly a top-notch two-day event. We'll start with the traditional Dene group of Leonard Adam and his accompanying two young sons. Laced with passion and energy galore, they were ideal evening openers. His nine-year-old boy, who was the band drummer, stunned the crowd with seemingly effortless solos, all of which were right on time.

Then there was Yukon Jack and his gang who rolled right along with his own distinctive throwback country style, inspiring couple after couple to visit and revisit the dance floor.

The ultimate treat came with the final act Doug and the Slugs. Outrageously entertaining and with the energy of men half their age, it was if the group sent a million volts of electricity through the audience. Lead singer Ted Okos, who really had shockingly great range, bobbed and weaved through each dynamic performance as people piled onto the dance floor, song after song.

On a side note, earlier in the day a small group of kids were lucky enough to see the wacky and brilliant children's entertainer Al Simmons for free

Given the generally poor turnout, you can't help but feel the experience must have been a slap in the face for the few organizers of the event who made it all happen at no personal financial gain.

And really that's what these community festivals are all about. You have a few volunteers on a committee who work overtime to, among many other things, scrape up money and hunt down bands to provide something meaningful for their community.

It must be said again that admission for Friday and Saturday night entertainment was $5!

I find it difficult to understand why people wouldn't want to support a cause such as this. Why wouldn't anyone want to get out and celebrate such a rare occasion of great, live, honest and true folk music? In doing that you're acknowledging a few people's efforts of trying add to their community and bring everyone together.

I was disappointed when Doug and the Slugs performed its last encore song, knowing that was it, no more entertainment; that special energy that they shared with the audience was over.

Knowing how close this year's festival was to nearly being called off, I wonder if the same few volunteers will bother trying again next year. I didn't ask, I only congratulated. But something tells me they'll be a few less committee members come next year.

Maybe Doug and the Slugs was the final curtain call. If so, that would be sad indeed.