Richard Gleeson
Northern News Services
Yellowknife (Jan 24/00) - Born and raised in the bush near Fort Good Hope for his first five years, Sahtu MLA Stephen Kakfwi has embarked on his fourth consecutive term in the Northwest Territories legislative assembly.
 "The more unclear and guarded you are about what you do and why you do it, the more paranoid, angry and hostile people become when scrutinizing your actions and plans" - Stephen Kakfwi. |
A day after being elected leader, he spoke to News/North about his vision of the new NWT.
News/North: Is the name of NWT going to become an issue again during this term of government?
SK: I haven't raised it.
But it's got to be done. We can leave it to somebody else or we can do it ourselves, right now ... This is our North, this is our land, this is our home. What do we want to call it? Northwest Territories? ...
(The Northwest Territories) is not a grown-up name. It's a name from a time in our political history that I think we've moved beyond.
NN: With all the issues facing the NWT, that could be a divisive issue and expensive in terms of time and resources.
SK: There is, informally, a suggestion that we may look at discussing with the MLAs and newly-elected ministers the type of forum or process we can use to discuss things like how to elect the ministers, how to elect the premier, the different functions and processes of government.
We are also going to look at changes to symbols and issues of heraldry. So, it's on the agenda. Caucus has agreed to discuss that at some point. That's where it will come up.
NN: Do you anticipate a plebiscite or a consultation on the name issue?
SK: Any type of consultations, discussions. People like to be involved.
We are, in a very healthy way, very much like anarchists that agree to work together. But everybody has to have their say. It makes things strong.
NN: Last time we were talking in this kind of forum, you mentioned that at a 1977 Dene leadership meeting you were one of the people who spoke against a motion to enter Dene candidates in territorial elections. You thought that it would be like -- you used this phrase at the time -- dancing with the devil.
Looking back, do you think you sold this system short?
SK: That (1977) was a long time ago, but I do know the motion that the chiefs passed said very clearly that we will put people in the territorial council, which is not the legislative assembly, to advance the agenda of the dene.
I said at that time, I think we will lose sight of what we are trying to do. I wasn't talking about myself then. I thought we should stay black and white, so to speak, in our strategy.
But people chose to try to put a member of parliament in Ottawa and put members of the dene in the legislative assembly. And we've accomplished that.
But on the part of the chiefs, some of them don't remember that, and they don't honour it as something that they themselves instructed to be implemented.
NN: If the purpose then of getting Dene people involved in public government was to advance Dene interests, your job now is to advance everybody's interests. Do you think that you are dancing a little too tight now?
SK: I never denied that it is sometimes obscure. It is not clear. When you are working only for the Dene it is clear.
Eventually I supported it. In fact, I took a month out of my life to campaign for George Erasmus (who was running for a seat in Parliament) in the Sahtu region, free of charge.
The strategy became somewhat obscure and forgotten, obviously, because some of the chiefs are very critical that we're even in government. I would say in large part that most of the chiefs are on side. They know we are here and of great use.
You look at the fantastic fight we put on against the gun law. We've done a lot of work in areas like housing and economic development that support aboriginal people, aboriginal businesses. There are countless instances where the government of the Northwest Territories has done things to improve the situation of aboriginal people in the communities and in the regions.
I've been re-elected. I've been serving for 12 years because it has been of benefit and substance to my constituents, who are predominately aboriginal.
NN: If you had to choose between the two, which would you choose, maintaining social programs or cutting the deficit.
SK: I don't think I have to choose. I can define my own choices. They need not be so categorical.
By providing a secure future, jobs and providing some sense of usefulness to people, a sense of well-being -- that diminishes a need for social assistance, wellness programs, it reduces medical costs to our citizens.
As soon as people become employees, as soon as they become able to provide for themselves, the social costs diminish.
NN: That's not going to happen in the next four years, though.
SK: I want to make it start to happen. I think we have to set some targets.
The level of smoking among our people must be addressed. The dollar cost within families for this habit, the extreme heath hazard it creates for people who smoke, as well as for their children, their wives, as well as people who live with them, who work with them. We can address that.
We can tell people this is self-inflicted and that it is not acceptable. We can make sure that people stop smoking in their public buildings in their offices, in restaurants, in public places.
There are things we can do about it, we just have to be politically strong enough.
NN: Are you willing to approve, to speak in favour of a deficit budget if that makes sense to you?
SK: That's something that the new cabinet is going to discuss in February and the new Minister of Finance will take into consideration.
We can legally borrow only so much money. We can only be in a deficit by only a certain amount. It's not like we have a lot of choice in the matter. It is for cabinet to decide. We will set a direction that everybody's comfortable with.
NN: Promises of increased transparency and openness are made at the beginning of most governments. Is there anything you can tell people out there to convince them this is going to be a more transparent government than those of the past?
SK: The more unclear and guarded you are about what you do and why you do it, the more paranoid, angry and hostile people become when scrutinizing your actions and plans.
My sense is let's keep it above board, let's try to keep it transparent, let's provide opportunities to explain why we do things.
NN: How do you propose to increase transparency?
SK: I don't have specific suggestions, but it is something that is on the agenda for the caucus meeting in early February.
NN: How hopeful are you that the government can take control of federal responsibilities such as resource royalties within the next four years?
SK: I'm really optimistic I can accomplish this. I think we can get an agreement between aboriginal governments and this government to go to Ottawa together to get Ottawa to agree to transfer lands and resource to us.
NN: You and former premier Don Morin served together in two cabinets but there always seemed to be some animosity between the two of you. How unfriendly was it?
SK: I have no comments to make regarding Mr. Morin. Mr. Morin may not be my friend, but the last time I remember he spoke in the legislature, he called me, "My friend, Mr. Kakfwi." That must mean something.
But then I said, "I don't have any friends, I can not patronize anybody."
This government will try to be up-front. Cabinet will try to support and get along with one another. If there are difficulties that arise in the course of us conducting our work, we will try to confront ourselves about it and acknowledge those. There will be mistakes, but they will be honest mistakes.
We will make sure people will know what we are doing all the time. That's going to be the kind of government we will have.
I don't want to dwell on the past, I don't want to criticize anybody. I just want people to give me and this cabinet a chance to do things right. I don't need enemies and detractors. I think we can do something for everybody. I'm asking people to do that.
