Monday, January 24, 2005
A few years ago, premier Stephen Kakfwi walked out in protest over the lack of funds heading North.
Throw in $4 million for the pipeline, $32 million for infrastructure, $40 million for the Northern Strategy and $10 million for health care and you'd be hard pressed not to be happy with the federal government these days.
The NWT has been practically rolling in federal dough lately, and that money makes Premier Joe Handley's chummy relationship with the prime minister a good idea.
But Handley would be wise to remember Martin's minority government rules at the whim of the opposition parties. It is conceivable a conservative government could be there this time next year.
As successive premiers have learned, the real power brokers and keepers of the purse strings are senior bureaucrats in Ottawa. These are people who stay in their jobs year after year unlike cabinet ministers or prime ministers.
With Northern issues enjoying such a high profile, now is the time to cultivate relationships among the deputy and assistant deputy ministers. We must educate these people, drive home the enormous potential the NWT has for enhancing Canada's economy.
Then the bureaucracy can educate the new ministers and prime ministers which will help the territorial leaders of today and tomorrow.
Politics have no place in the classroom ... or in the science fair.
Yet this bit of common sense hasn't stopped the Hay River District Education Authority (DEA) from banning Ecole Boreale students from participating in a science fair at Princess Alexandra elementary school.
The DEA made the move because it believes the French school is stealing students from the public system.
This is a high-stakes situation. Every student represents $9,000 in funding and the loss of a few could affect the number of teachers and programs offered at a school.
Unfortunately, the DEA has decided to use children as pawns in this political fight. Science fairs celebrate creativity, hard work and excellence. They're not the place to fight this battle.
Princess Alexandra is right across the playing field from Ecole Boreale.
What message is the DEA sending to Hay River children? Instead, the public school authority should gather up its facts and petition Education Minister Charles Dent to intervene if there's anything funny going on.
Let the kids be creative and share their excitement about science with their friends -- no matter what the language of instruction and despite adult politics.
Kids in Nunavut love sports. That's why high school tournaments are very important events.
While many communities may not participate, it is usually not for a lack of interest. For one, you just can't have a team without a coach.
Nunavut's volunteer coaches deserve our gratitude for the time, effort and expertise they provide our territory's young people.
The kids playing in tournaments appreciate this. That's why they play as hard as they can.
Sport, whether volleyball, basketball, hockey or wrestling, does more than hone muscles. It teaches young people discipline, instills a work ethic and shows them how hard work and enthusiasm can overcome many obstacles.
It's fun too. Kids meet up with players from other communities they have not seen since last year's tournament.
They find out about what each other has been up to and where others their age are going in life.
Unfortunately, there are plenty of kids who would like to take part in sports but don't have coaches.
Many of Nunavut's current crop of coaches are originally from the south.
They want to contribute and their efforts are appreciated and should be encouraged.
Everyone who wants to improve sports in Nunavut has a role to play, but statistics show that most southerners will eventually leave the North.
If sports programs are to grow deep roots in the communities, coaches who know and understand the kids are needed. It's also important to have coaches who have either grown up in the community or spent enough time there to know what it's like to not be able to play.
This is starting to happen. In Kugluktuk, the Grizzlies have a mentorship program. This ensures kids are ready to coach when they get enough experience and are the right age.
Bryan Simonee of Pond Inlet and Terry Aknavigak of Cambridge Bay have both taken over as head coaches of their communities' basketball teams after years spent as players.
Similar things are happening in other communities, but not often enough.
We know that money is tight in our territorial sporting organizations. We also know that organizing anything territory-wide is a difficult task.
Nunavut's sports organizations are doing a great job considering what few resources they have and the costs they face.
Regardless, we call on Nunavut's sporting groups to organize more coaching clinics and certification workshops to get more people involved.
The kids will thank us.
Editorial Comment
Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News
While all Nunavummiut should take great pride in their willingness to share with those in need, the Kivalliq region was a model of compassion and community spirit this past holiday season.
Holiday food banks and Christmas hamper drives were the norm across the region, from Repulse Bay to Arviat and every point in-between.
The word community means much more than a group of houses, stores and office buildings standing together in one area on the land.
The true definition of a community includes pride, spirit, security, tolerance, understanding, generosity, compassion, co-operation and caring.
And the good folks of the Kivalliq region showed this past month that all seven of the region's hamlets are communities in the truest sense of the word.
Yes, we have our share of differences from time to time, but, when the chips are down, the vast majority of us who call the Kivalliq home never fail to answer the bell when our neighbours are in need of a little help along the way.
People from all walks of life open their hearts and give what they can in the Kivalliq, and they do it without a moment's hesitation.
It is heartwarming to see the results of such generosity.
To hear of an RCMP officer being met with tears of joy as he or she drops off a food hamper to a large family during the holiday season, or to see the glowing faces of children as they unwrap Christmas presents they otherwise may not have received, leaves a lasting impression on one's heart and mind.
Global community
The spirit of compassion that so marks the people of the Kivalliq is not confined to within the region's borders.
In this modern age, the world truly is becoming a global community and, thanks to the wonders of technology, we know of our neighbours' struggles almost as soon as they happen.
When the tsunami disaster struck in Asia this past month, the people of our region responded quickly to the heart-wrenching images flashing across our TV sets.
Donation jars were quickly placed, and filled, in high-traffic areas in every community.
Benefit concerts were organized, baked goodies were sold, and Kivallimmiut opened their hearts and wallets to hundreds of thousands of people a half a world away.
The generosity of our region is not confined to disaster, or special occasions once or twice a year.
We are almost always among the most charitable people of our nation, despite lacking the personal wealth many in the south enjoy.
And although Kivallimmiut give without asking for recognition, they are to be commended for their understanding of what it means to be a true community - in every sense of the word!:
Editorial Comment
Jason Unrau
Inuvik Drum
Last year I wrote an article about Dan Sydney's remarkable foil ball, constructed over a 30-year span using nothing but cigarette box tinfoil.
Recent events saw the town wavering over whether to include recycling in its landfill contract via the request for proposal for a beverage container depot, which brought to mind Sydney's tinfoil ball exploits, once again.
You see, when Sydney went to work on his ball of foil, oh so many moons ago, he must have been pleased with his progress. Starting with one foil piece and adding a second, Sydney instantly doubled the mass of his ball.
However, with each additional piece he added, our hero was increasing the size of his sphere by a fraction equal to however many pieces preceded the latest.
Comparing that to the amount of, let's say, tin cans adding up in the town's landfill for the last 30 years, there is a belief, similar to Sydney's foil ball progress, that one more can isn't really going to make a difference.
Which leaves us with Albert Bernhardt of AB Salvage and his wife Barb Armstrong, tireless champions of recycling in a region that needs one desperately, perhaps more than anywhere else in Canada.
When the GNWT introduced its Waste Reduction and Recovery Act in October of 2003, it solicited expert opinion on the matter from around the territory.
Now the territory is tackling this mandate by putting out requests for proposals (RFPs) for beverage container depots, part of a larger recycling initiative planned for the NWT.
Whatever one's feelings about free enterprise and the privatization of the delivery of services in the territory through RFPs and tenders, with AB Salvage's nearly four years of experience garnered by establishing its own depot for recyclables, why didn't the GNWT get AB Salvage on board straight away?
Instead, it issued an RFP for a beverage depot in Inuvik - submissions to be reviewed by Resources Wildlife and Economic Development (RWED) - and essentially sparked a mountain of what now appears to be a pile of unnecessary work. The RFP set into motion an Armstrong appeal to town council to answer the RFP by way of including the depot with its current landfill contract.
Council then referred her request to its public works committee, which advised council to hire a consultant to explore the options, which it did.
However, when it was all said and done, council back-pedalled, citing its unwillingness to compete with private enterprise as well as the unknown cost factor of building a depot, which is not included in the RFP.
Meanwhile, potential recyclables are piling up in the landfill and those who have fought for recycling in this community with actions, not just words, are seemingly being shut out of the process.
To date, Armstrong has put her own proposal together but if it's accepted then we're back to town council. Why? Because her proposal includes building a depot at the landfill, which is town land.
Will this saga ever end? Who knows. What all of us do know is that the cans, bottles, plastic containers, cardboard and countless other recyclables will continue to pile up at our beautiful landfill.
Fortunately for Inuvik residents, there's somebody already there, sorting out the trash.
Editorial Comment
Derek Neary
Deh cho Drum
Dim the lights, put on the soft music and let's take a trip down memory lane.
It's 2001, and that's Tom Wilson sitting in the Fort Simpson mayor's chair. He and his council are certain they're getting a raw deal through the Department of Municipal and Community Affair's (MACA) financing formula.
Mayor and council have a MACA senior financial advisor appear before them in council chambers. The bureaucrat explains how reverting to hamlet status would not stop the community's financial woes. The loss in tax revenue will be greater than the gains in formula funding as a hamlet. As well, MACA will assume decision-making power over capital projects priced at $100,000 or more.
The hamlet deal looks great for homeowners and businesses because they'll save a bundle in property taxes. The problem is, there's only about 120 of them in the community of 1,250 people.
Back to the downside, as a hamlet, Fort Simpson will no longer be in position to gain from a future population boom and increasing tax revenues.
But, many residents say, that senior financial advisor works for MACA, so he's biased. He's giving us skewed information.
The allegation lingers.
Raymond Michaud and a new council are elected. They too are feeling the pinch of what they deem to be an unfair formula funding policy.
After meeting the minister of MACA, council convinces the department to pay for an independent village versus hamlet analysis. It's a move that should put a end to persisting doubts.
North of 60's Andrew Gaule, a Fort Simpson resident, drafts an in-depth, 45-page report that reiterates several of the points that MACA's senior financial advisor made three and a half years ago. There are some keen new insights and a major new wrinkle: The GNWT's New Deal for Community Governments.
It could throw a major wrench into things. Gaule suggests waiting for the full picture before making a hasty decision on village versus hamlet status.
In addition, there's uncertainty over whether MACA's existing legislation would even allow the village to slide back to a hamlet. It could take at least a couple of years before such a move is approved, if ever.
Then there's Dehcho First Nations self-government. It's going to have a major impact on municipal governance, too. Unfortunately, nobody knows exactly how all that is going to work yet.
One thing is for sure, it seems, the formula financing deal stinks for Fort Simpson. That's a finding that seems to surface again and again.
Village council has passed a 2005 budget with a $831,954 deficit attached. It's a giant neon sign that exclaims, "We're broke!"
In a few weeks, the mayor and senior administrative officer will sit down with MACA officials and once again bring their attention to the funding formula. If they can prove to MACA that the village isn't throwing money away, then MACA should finally relent and give the village the "new deal" it has been waiting for.