Editorial page

Friday, September 12, 2003
De Beers need not be forever in the NWT

Premier Stephen Kakfwi made a huge mistake when he accused diamond giant De Beers of profiting off 'blood diamonds.' De Beers stopped such evil practices more than three years ago.

Kakfwi's apology for his mistake was swift and we expect De Beers will be gracious enough to forgive Kakfwi.

We also expect De Beers will be practical enough to conclude negotiations on providing part of its proposed Snap Lake diamond production for cutting and polishing houses in Yellowknife.

De Beers doesn't want to do this. They want to come in, hire some people, take the diamonds and go.

BHP wanted to do the same, as did Diavik. Thank God and Northern tenacity that the territorial government stuck to its guns and demanded that a fair share of diamonds, bought at fair market value, remain here for secondary industry.

The buildings on 'Diamond Row' by the airport, and the working people in them, are the proper fruits of that battle.

De Beers' latest smokescreen is an alleged offer to aboriginal groups to buy into the $489 million mine if they want a share of diamond production. Apparently, no aboriginal groups have stepped forward with the cash, which is no surprise.

We have a much better idea -- send De Beers back where they came from and allow another corporation who wants to do business to partner with us.

BHP Billiton and Diavik/Rio Tinto have proven there are enough diamonds in the barrenlands to generate huge profits.

They have proven a predominantly Northern-based workforce can do the job. They have recognized and accepted the obligation of providing Northern diamonds for creating a brand new industry in cutting and polishing.

From the time in 1998 a De Beers director made unkind comments about Northerners sticking to mining and forget processing, the company has revealed itself.

Premier Kakfwi knows exactly who and what he is dealing with and will not falter. We expect him to proceed on the basis that no commitment on diamonds from De Beers means no De Beers in the North.

It's what the corporate world calls a business decision.


MLAs deserve same level playing field

Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News

There seems to be a bit of concern among some Kivalliq residents as to the right of elected officials to conduct private business with the Nunavut government.

Arviat MLA Kevin O'Brien, in particular, has become the target of a letter writing campaign raising questions as to his right to lease property (housing units) to the Nunavut government.

The Integrity Act provides for any MLA to request clearance from the integrity commissioner for any contract they are entering into with the territorial government.

Each transaction is scrutinized on its own merits to ensure its approval is in the public's best interest.

Once approved, a letter of permission is issued to the member.

MLAs must also fill out an annual statement of disclosure.

They must disclose the source, nature and owner(s) of assets worth $10,000 or more, any income received over $5,000 during the past year, any contract entered into with the Nunavut government and its resulting benefits, and any activity authorized by the integrity commission.

That includes the name of any party with a 10 per cent or greater interest in the business activity authorized.

Conversely, the nature and source of any liability over $10,000 must also be disclosed.

The system provides transparency for the public's right to know what person, partner or corporation is doing business with the government. That being said, the process is a two-way street.

An MLA has every right to enter into the same type of business arrangement anyone else in the territory can.

That's the way it should be. An MLA shouldn't be prevented from conducting business simply because they were elected by the public.

As long as the elected official has permission, provides full disclosure and does not use their position to influence a business decision or benefit from inside knowledge the general public is not privy to, it's business as usual for them.

As it is, the Nunavut government has a limited number of people or organizations to deal with that can provide the goods or services it requires to run effectively.

To further inhibit the government's access to those goods and services by prohibiting an elected official from doing business with it would be foolhardy.

It's really a matter of checks and balances. As long as elected officials play by the same rules as everyone else, their successful business transactions with the Nunavut government could, ultimately, benefit us all.


These kids are real brats

Editorial Comment
Terry Halifax
Inuvik Drum


I hate to drone on week after week about "kids these days," but this recent spat of vandalism has gotten everyone in town riled up.

For the umpteenth time, the windows were smashed from the youth centre, a building was set ablaze and the new basketball court was ruined.

To me the basketball court has got to be about the worst of all. Erected barely a week, the court has been spray-painted, the nets ripped off the hoops and now one of the backboards was torn down.

As jaded as I am, this surprised me. I've been in inner-city ghettos that looked like burned-out war zones, with one exception -- the basketball courts.

I suppose it's because inner-city kids know that if they rip down the backboards they might lose their only form of recreation, and, for some, the only way out.

Here, the new court was viewed as just another thing of no value to be ripped apart.

I was at a sporting event over the summer, where kids were flown in from all over the Delta, at no cost to them or their parents, fed for two days and at the end, everyone was given a prize and a ribbon for competing.

I sat and watched, waiting for the winning team photo, as every one of the 40 kids received their prize and ribbon and not a single one said "thank you."

This manner-less phenomenon first came to my attention last winter, when those wrestlers were in town. I flew to Tuk with the grapplers and was taking photos as a frenzied mob lined-up for autographs.

After writing 50-or-so autographs, Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake shook his head and asked, "Can't any of you kids say 'Thank you?'"

It's not that they didn't appreciate the autograph, I'm sure they did, or they wouldn't have stood in line to get it, but gifts have become expected by the youth.

These gifts given to "inspire" the youth to succeed have inspired the opposite reaction. They have come to expect something for nothing and that is exactly the value they place on them.

The gift of this basketball court had the same effect. Something for nothing.

Already, plans are in the works to build a heavier steel backboard and now town council is looking for answers. At Monday night's meeting a curfew was discussed, a neighbourhood watch and a Crime Stoppers program.

I think this problem is too far-reaching to be dealt with by any of those solutions. There is a thankless mob of renegade children in this town who will only be stopped if they are left to police themselves.

When an act of vandalism is committed by a few, punish them all.

I'm sick to death of the politicians and their syrupy rhetoric saying we need to do more for the youth. It's high time the youth did something for the rest of us.

I propose that no new basketball court be built until the youth pick up 10,000 aluminum cans. No admission to the Inuvik Youth Centre until 10,000 rocks are picked from the new golf course.

I would also propose that no gift, no ribbon, no hot dog nor hamburger be given to anyone in this town until they utter the words "thank you."


An eye on the hourglass

Editorial Comment
Derek Neary
Deh Cho Drum


The proposal from the Fort Simpson Chamber of Commerce to form an all-encompassing group to address the impacts of development is just the latest call to action, even if just at the community level.

Yes, construction on a Mackenzie Valley pipeline is still at least three or four years away. But, as Chamber president Andrew Gaule points out, the Mackenzie Gas Project is already well into its project definition phase. As well, an issuance cycle for oil and gas, as identified in the Deh Cho First Nations' Interim Resource Development Agreement, is supposed to take place by April of next year. That's not a lot of time.

In late March, Deh Cho beneficiary Dennis Nelner, spoke of the need for a voluntary committee consisting of all regional government department managers. Nelner, who is also the regional petroleum advisor for the Department of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development, advised that all stakeholders need to collectively address impacts from a pipeline. That mega-project is expected to affect roads, health services, housing, sewage, water and many other areas. There will also be training and contract opportunities -- presumably more of them if something is done sooner rather than later.

Later in March, the Deh Cho First Nations (DCFN) organized a social development forum in regards to the pending pipeline. Twenty-five delegates from several Deh Cho communities agreed that everyone will be best served if all stakeholders plan together. The delegates called upon the DCFN to hold a regional conference, including every regional political body, business and agency, as soon as possible to create a vision statement.

So, here we are more than five months later and we can't say nothing has been done. Undoubtedly some political groups and businesses have been making progress on their own proposals. But a void remains in terms of a regional strategic plan.

How many more groups or individuals will have to make the same appeal before our elected leaders answer the bell?

Sick computers

A series of e-mail viruses that struck Fort Simpson this week really gummed up the works. The viruses sent a flood of e-mails, many of them with local user names attached, to other local people on the system. The e-mails contained attachments designed to further infect the recipients' computers.

There are people worldwide with too much time on their hands. They have to see how they can foil the system, so they invent these viruses. The challenge and the knowledge that numerous others are having their day disrupted must satisfy those pathetic individuals.

There will always be these types around. The best defence is frequently updated anti-virus software. Some of us have to learn that the hard way.