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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - A Yellowknife father whose children were taken away and put in foster care says his family is being torn apart by a system that has complete control over the contact he and his spouse can have with their children.

"We have absolutely no say in our kids' lives anymore," said the father of a 13-year-old girl and two boys ages five and 11, and who cannot be identified while his children are in the protection system.

His children were taken away from him last December when he and his wife got into a heated, alcohol-fueled argument and police were called. The couple has since gone through alcohol treatment and are trying to get their kids back, but he said the process starts and stops at the whims of the social workers they deal with.

They can see their children several times a week, but on a strict schedule that's beyond their control. As well, he said his children were originally scheduled to be returned June 20, but their social worker is trying to get a three-month extension to finish the paperwork - including one month when she'll be on vacation.

"My family suffers at her convenience," said the father.

The system has been adversarial from the start, he said, and the powers of social workers go unchecked. If a social worker says she saw him or his wife at a bar, he said that worker's word is accepted by the courts every time.

"They have the power to write stuff that's not even true," he said.

An ombudsman position was not among the recommendations tabled by MLAs last October after a standing committee reviewed the Child and Family Services Act, travelling around the territory and speaking to those in the system. The MLAs did, however, recommend increased supervision and oversight of caseworker-to-parent meetings and interactions in an attempt to lessen the often-adversarial relationships that develop. That's a recommendation the Department of Health and Social Services accepted but doesn't have the money to put into practice at this point, according to assistant deputy minister Dana Heide.

"That's a future goal for us, and that has money attached to it that we don't have currently," Heide said.

A lack of money was cited as the reason behind many of the recommendations the department turned down. Only 22 of the 73 recommendations were accepted outright in February, raising the ire of Yellowknife MLAs Glen Abernethy, Bob Bromley and Wendy Bisaro, who sat on the committee that conducted the review.

"That (reasoning) seems unfortunate to me because solving some of these problems or investing a little money up front will save us money down the line," said Abernethy last week, adding healthier families produce healthier children who are more prepared to contribute to and be a part of society down the line.

He said he is, however, happy some of the recommendations are going forward.

One in the process of being implemented is that of creating community-based and appointed committees made up of members that would take on the role of courts in deciding what should be done with the child in question, or that would discuss and try to solve or at least identify the underlying problems in a family - issues such as poverty, alcoholism or lack of education.

Heide said this is an integral part of the department's strategy to get children out of the court system.

"Instead of these kids going to court, they go to these community groups," he said. "It's very much a reflection of tradition."

Currently there is such a committee in Fort McPherson - the only one in the NWT. Ndilo and Dettah, communities with a stronger traditional base, are eligible to have such a committee but Yellowknife is not, Heide said.

He said the GNWT has set aside about $500,000 to get the program off the ground, and though the committee positions will not be salaried, the department is considering offering honouraria. He said communities have yet to sign on, but the department is aiming to start them up between September and November.

As well, $300,000 has been set aside for the Healthy Families Program, which would see health workers visit the homes of willing parents, to help them learn the ropes of caring for an infant.

The GNWT is also establishing an Office of the Children's Lawyer, slated to be in place within the 2011-2012 fiscal year, to help appoint lawyers to represent children in some protection cases.

Still, some of the recommendations that were shelved due to funding constraints may be the ones that would help in cases like the father who hasn't had custody of his three children for almost eight months - such as more staff to lighten caseloads so the process can be sped up or that a staff person be assigned to parents to help them through the child protection process and to know their rights.

Abernethy said the 40 recommendations that were accepted in principle or conditionally may be worked into the department's business plans in the future as more funding becomes available.

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