NNSL (Mar 20/98) - Jane Groenewegen will get legal help from the territorial government after all.

On Wednesday, conflict of interest commissioner Anne Crawford ordered the GNWT to provide publicly funded counsel to help the Hay River MLA co-operate with the investigation into Groenewegen's conflict of interest complaint against Premier Don Morin.

Groenewegen's initial request for funding was denied by the GNWT's Management Services Board on Feb. 23. Crawford's announcement overturns the board's decision.

The board is made up of Speaker Sam Gargan, Health and Social Services Minister Kelvin Ng and ordinary MLAs Floyd Roland, Vince Steen and Kevin O'Brien.

"In order to maintain balance and fairness in the process in this case, the discretion of the commissioner should be exercised in favor of authorizing counsel," said Ann Crawford in a news release.

Under the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act and the Public Inquiries Act, the commissioner determined she had power to order counsel to be supplied to Groenewegen on the basis that it would help with the investigation.

After hitting a wall with the management board, last month, Groenewegen wasted no time tracking down Crawford in Iqaluit and asking her for assistance.

Crawford was expecting to have the complaint wrapped up by the end of February.

But the preliminary issue of funding for legal help took nearly five weeks to review and forced a delay in the specific investigation of a possible conflict of interest.

Groenewegen filed the complaint with the conflict of interest commissioner on Feb. 16. She said Morin may have violated a section of the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act that deals with maintaining public confidence, impartiality and the acceptance of benefits which could erode public confidence.

The complaint deals in part with the Lahm Ridge Tower lease, in which the GNWT signed a long-term contract with two men with close ties to Premier Don Morin after the building's previous owner had tried unsuccessfully to secure a similar deal.