SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Yellowknifers had the opportunity to hear the breakdown of the 13 chapters contained in the devolution agreement-in-principle and put questions to Premier Floyd Roland about devolution Wednesday evening at the legislative assembly.

Mayor Gord Van Tighem acted as mediator during a town hall meeting at the legislative assembly where Premier Floyd Roland answered questions about devolution Wednesday. - Katherine Hudson/NNSL photo

A handful of questions from the audience of more than 30 people dealt with topics such as how the NWT would use additional funds; the amount of resource revenue the GNWT would collect that will not be deducted from its territorial formula financing; what the addition of 175 government jobs created through devolution would mean to the NWT and how to ensure women are at the table for the agreement discussions.

"Can my government please tell us who is accountable for this?" asked one resident.

Premier Floyd Roland said accountability rests with members who are elected to the territory's legislative assembly.

"We want to take on that control in the future as we have authority and as we can write legislation and amend regulations. We will be able to do that in the future. That accountability then becomes ours as a government of the Northwest Territories," said Roland.

"(The agreement-in-principle) is beyond the assembly, beyond communities and beyond aboriginal governments. It is, in a sense, a territorial-wide look at it of what we could do."

Roland said he wants to negotiate with all aboriginal leaders on the details of devolution, but that some seats at the table remain vacant.

"We still have the door open to them and we're hoping that they will join us in moving forward," he said.

He said 175 new jobs will be transferred from the federal level to the GNWT through the devolution process. He said the federal government has made commitments to staff in Ottawa that they don't have to transfer north, but do have the option.

"Right now the existing jobs on the ground remain as they are. We are looking at how we would set up the organizational structure of new jobs coming to the North."

Yellowknife Mayor Gord Van Tighem moderated the event, which he said was for questions and not for debate. He said this was a good opportunity to get information straight from the source.

"This is something that's been worked on for nine years and it gets worked on in back rooms ... It's a good time to get informed and ask the questions," he said.

The town hall meeting was the first hosted by the six Yellowknife MLAs: Frame Lake MLA Wendy Bisaro, Yellowknife South MLA Bob McLeod, Weledeh MLA Bob Bromley, Yellowknife Centre MLA Robert Hawkins, Great Slave MLA Glen Abernethy and Kam Lake MLA Dave Ramsay.

Ramsay said devolution will be a hot topic in the upcoming territorial election and even though the agreement-in-principle has been signed, there is still a lot of work and negotiating to be done.

He said he thinks it would be beneficial for Yellowknife MLAs to work closer together and host more meetings on topics that are important to them.

"I think this is a good model that we had here ... I think the public has the right to ask questions about what's happening and I think the more questions that get asked the better."

Roland said further town hall meetings and discussions will be planned on a basis of request.

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