Jillian Dickens
Northern News Services

Iqaluit (Nov 28/05) - Friday's legislature was cancelled after all the regular members showed up late.

Tagak Curley, MLA for Rankin Inlet North, said he and his fellow members were in a regular meeting of the caucus, which ran late.

Legislative assembly public relations officer Tony Rose explained that when the House Speaker arrived in the chambers, there was no quorum, only members of cabinet were there and the meeting had to be cancelled. This was after the bell calling members to the chamber rang for at least 10 minutes.

Curley said he and his colleagues were unaware of the rule.

"It wasn't intended. We assumed the bell would ring until all the members were seated," said Curley. "We didn't realize that rule existed."

Both Curley and Rose said the ministers and regular members will catch up on the missed hours during the remaining sitting days.

Rose said the schedule is always a little loose, allowing for such delays.

When elder Eddie Kikoak of Gjoa Haven heard the MLAs missed the sitting, he was "unimpressed and disappointed."

"As a taxpayer, it disappoints me to see elected members acting like little babies," said Kikoak."It's not very impressive to me. They are highly paid, even when they don't show up to work."

He said when he and other civilians don't show up to work, their bosses deduct their salaries.

"I think their wages should be deducted and they should be donated to charities that help homelessness, the food bank or the women's shelter."

Curley said himself and other officials took the extra hours to catch up on correspondence that had been piling up.

"We didn't just do nothing that day," said Curley.