Kerry McCluskey
Northern News Services

Iqaluit (July 23/01) - If cabinet ministers are like children awaiting report cards, the month of November will inspire fear in their hearts. That's the date the mid-term review of their performance is scheduled to take place.

Quttiktuq MLA Rebekah Uqi Williams says she wants to ensure cabinet ministers are reviewed fairly this fall. - Kerry McCluskey/NNSL photo

To be held in the Nunavut legislative assembly chamber Nov. 15 and 16, the review will be conducted by the regular MLAs.

The point behind the governmental report card -- open to all members of the public -- is to grade the executive council on their leadership to date.

All 19 MLAs agreed to the mid-term review winning their seats in 1999.

While the details surrounding the review are still vague, Quttiktuq MLA Rebekah Uqi Williams said her priority is to ensure that judgment day went down in a fair and equitable manner.

"We need to be fair and balanced and equal to these people," said Williams, between visits to her High Arctic constituents.

"I want to see all cabinet ministers get the same review so we must put some guidelines and criteria in place to see that it's planned properly," she said.

Williams said to ensure a lack of bias from the start, a person from outside Nunavut and the Northwest Territories would be hired to help the regular MLAs plan the style of the review. Possible areas up for grading are what the ministers have done to implement Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit, how well they've fulfilled their departmental policies and mandates and what programs they've delivered during their two years in cabinet. Williams said regular MLAs may also seek input from constituents.

Should it be found that a minister is not doing his or her job properly, Iqaluit Centre MLA Hunter Akat Tootoo said the politician could be removed from their post.

"It's possible that the regular members could decide a minister isn't doing their job and that they no longer feel they can support the person being a minister," said Tootoo.

He added, however, that it is too premature to comment on the process that would be used to remove a cabinet minister from a portfolio.

"The technicalities of how that would come about are at the very preliminary stages," he said.

Regular MLAs are expected to meet over the course of the summer to plan the review. The fifth session of the legislative assembly reconvenes Nov.14.