'I am offended'
MLA's glee over lack of investment in Yellowknife raises ire
Laura Busch
Northern News Services
Published Friday, October 25, 2013
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
"The media was quick to pick up in the capital plan that there's nothing for Yellowknife, and I'm glad."
These words, said by Nahendeh MLA Kevin Menicoche during a Committee of the Whole meeting last Friday, sparked controversy in the legislative assembly this week.
On Monday afternoon, Frame Lake MLA Wendy Bisaro rose on a point of privilege to voice her disdain for the comments.
"I want to say that I am offended by the comment from my colleague. I would like to also say that my constituents are offended as are all the constituents in Yellowknife. Almost 50 per cent of the population of the NWT is here and I don't feel that that comment is one that they will take lightly."
She then asked for an apology, which Menicoche showed no interest in providing.
"I do stand on my opinion on this matter," he told the assembly.
"I regret that I have to stand in this House on a point of privilege by a Yellowknife member and the community of Yellowknife because they were offended. I don't believe I said anything out of the ordinary."
Speaker Jackie Jacobson ultimately agreed with Menicoche, and dismissed Bisaro's complaints Thursday afternoon.
"I'd like to discourage members from using points of privilege to tell the House that we're offended," he said, adding if debate broke out each time an MLA felt offended in the legislative assembly, it would be difficult to get anything done.
"I think the Speaker was right, he said (Bisaro) wasn't prevented from doing her work and I thought it was a fair ruling in that regard," Menicoche told Yellowknifer yesterday.
"We all have opinions and it just so happened that she was offended and took to the rules to ask for an apology.
"I am still glad that for the first time in 10 years, Yellowknife has less money than the communities because I really believe there is a need for expenditures in the communities."
The 2013-14 capital plan is the third released by the 17th legislative assembly, under the guidance of Finance Minister Michael Miltenberger.
Miltenberger told Yellowknifer the tug-of-war between Yellowknife and non-Yellowknife MLAs for infrastructure and programming funding has existed since he joined the assembly 18 years ago.
"For outside of Yellowknife MLAs, it's very difficult. It's a major hill to climb when you're dealing with all the needs in Yellowknife compared to all the needs of your much smaller constituency," he said.
"That's the dynamic that's been there since the assembly started. It's just a function of size; it's a perennial between urban and rural."
That said, when one looks beyond the current capital plan to recent years, Yellowknife continuously receives its fair share, Miltenberger maintained. In the past 10 years, major Yellowknife projects include $150 million upgrades to Highway 3, $30 million for a new government office building ($16.5 of which is coming out of the 2014-15 budget), and $17 million for the Giant Mine bypass road.
The $254-million 2013-14 capital plan contains roughly $32 million for Yellowknife, including $5 million to plan for renovations to Stanton Territorial Hospital. That project is expected to get at least $20 million in funding per year starting in 2014-15.
Generally, projects in any constituency are championed for the better part of a decade before they receive capital funding, said Miltenberger, pointing to Fort Smith Health Centre renovations, which he pushed for 15 years before the project became a reality.
"Every member has got those kind of issues," he said.
"There is a small pot of money, intense competition just because of the sheer volume (of needs.)"
- with files from Candace Thomson
