Kent Driscoll
Northern News Services

Spence Bay (Nov 28/05) - Taloyoak Mayor Sam Tulugialik will be resigning in January, but he says it has nothing to do with a turbulent public meeting held Nov. 21.

The hamlet council held a community meeting, in part to discuss the hiring practises of the hamlet.

Residents were upset that the mayor and other town councillors had been hired by the hamlet to do jobs other than those they were elected to do.

The Hamlet Act states, "No council shall appoint a council member to a salaried office or employment in the municipal corporation."

In Taloyoak, 200 of the 900 citizens received a T-4 from the hamlet last year, including the mayor and some councillors.

Senior administrative officer Scotty Edgerton believes that the word "salaried" in the Hamlet Act is the key.

"I probably shouldn't have done it (hired councillors and the mayor), but the rule says you can't hire them to a salaried position," said Edgerton.

The positions they were hired for are casual positions, not full-time salaried posts. Tulugialik was hired for a few days to inspect homes for potential renovations.

"We hire anybody who walks in the door. If you need a job today, see me and you'll get one," said Edgerton.

Kristine Lyall was at the meeting and doesn't think the hamlet is doing enough to follow the rules.

"I said that it was a conflict of interest. These jobs should be tendered to the public first. A lot of contracts went to councillors. They should resign," said Lyall.

Lyall wasn't alone. There were more than 100 people at the public meeting, many upset with the hamlet's hiring process, she said.

The practice is against the rules, but it isn't unusual, according to assistant deputy minister for community and government services Shawn Maley.

"We've been through this quite a bit. It comes up about yearly. If we are notified, we write a letter to the council and we have always received full co-operation," said Maley.

The Hamlet Act allows for the minister to take over a community council if they are in violation of the rules. Maley sees that step as being too big for the problem in Taloyoak.

"The minister has that ability, but it is only used in the most extreme cases," said Maley. He added that he is satisfied that Taloyoak will not be hiring council members in the future.

Soon after the public meeting, Tulugialik announced on local radio that he was going to resign in January. The hamlet is holding an election now, and he wanted to wait until that process is complete.

"It started to affect my family, and I don't like that. When I'm out on the land, or at home, I'm thinking about the community 24-7. I've tried to the best of my ability, but the stress level (is too much)," said Tulugialik.

The mayor wouldn't comment on his employment with the hamlet, but did confirm he had done casual work for it.

Edgerton will miss Tulugialik. "He's a good, honest man and it is a really tough job. I admire people who go on council. There is a lot of stress and disappointed people to deal with," said Edgerton.

Tulugialik was elected in January, after former mayor Jayko Neeveacheek resigned. Neeveacheek said at the time "I'm too young for that kind of stress."