SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Residents of Ndilo will elect their chief on June 16.

Peter Liske and Ted Tsetta have stepped forward to challenge incumbent Fred Sangris for the four-year term position.

All three men have experience in band politics.

Candidates will answer questions from band members at a forum scheduled to be held in the Ndilo gym from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. tonight.

A by-election will also be held for two Dettah band council positions June 30. Nominations close June 15.

Fred Sangris

Incumbent Fred Sangris, 51, has been involved in band politics since 1991. He has served two terms as chief. His family has extensive political experience.

Why are you running for chief?

"What the Yellowknives Dene need is good strong, sober leadership. The Yellowknives don't need problems, they need good, clean leaders. Leadership is not a game. Leadership is a very serious job."

The issues:

Land negotiations, environment, wildlife, creating jobs with the mining industry, addressing housing shortages and providing opportunities for youth.

On the land negotiations process:

"I hope we can settle very quickly. Once the land settlements are completed, the biggest work begins, which is the implementation process. Everybody's waiting for certainty. It's the biggest sticking point in the Northwest Territories. Unless we resolve this issue, we will be continuing to work in the fog. Once they are completed, we can sit down with the GNWT and say let's move to the next chapter, which would be devolution and resource revenue sharing."

On Ndilo's relationship with Yellowknife:

"Let's face it, the City of Yellowknife is not going to move.

"We realize they are going to be here until the end of time. The best solution I see is to work with the city, the mayor and town council and do some planning. If the Yellowknives are not involved and the planning process goes on, at the end of the day, the Yellowknives are not going to be happy.

"If we build a partnership and a good relationship, good things will happen."

Ted Tsetta

Tsetta, 47, is a two-term Yellowknives Dene First Nation band councillor, and a former community negotiator for the group. He's spent 28 years working in the mining industry and his father was a former chief for seven years.

Why are you running for chief?

"My main objective is education. They say education pays. We can't live on handouts from the government. We have to do it on our own. My leadership will be about building a bridge between elders and youth. I was taught to respect and listen to people."

The issues:

Education, land negotiations, addressing housing shortages, building economic opportunities and strengthening language.

On the land negotiations process?

"We have to control our jurisdiction. We've got to let them know who owns this land. We've got to exercise our sovereignty. We have to go back to the community. We have to go back to the members and review where we are with negotiations. I want to see more members involved, more youth involvement, more elders involved."

On Ndilo's relationship with Yellowknife:

"It's really important. You have to work with the city. We're part of the city and the city is a part of (Ndilo). The land doesn't belong to the government. It doesn't belong to the city. It belongs to us and we're going to share it 50-50, right down the middle. And our community boundary has to be established."

Peter Liske

When contacted for this story, Liske said he would talk with Yellowknifer after this evening's debate.