SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Premier Floyd Roland is not impressed with an open letter from two major aboriginal organizations denouncing the agreement-in-principle on devolution.

"I'm disappointed that they've picked certain parts of discussions that we've had and used those pieces to emphasize their disagreement with the agreement-in-principle overall," Roland said, adding that, although it is not the perfect deal, it is worth pursuing.

The letter - signed by Dene Nation National Chief Bill Erasmus and Gwich'in Tribal Council president Richard Nerysoo - was published as ads in News/North and The Hill-Times, the parliamentary newspaper in Ottawa.

Roland said he will be writing a response.

The devolution agreement-in-principle was signed in January by the federal and territorial governments, along with the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation and the Northwest Territory Metis Nation.

However, it faced widespread opposition from other aboriginal organizations.

In their letter, Erasmus and Nerysoo, who is a former premier of the NWT, stated, "In its present form, the agreement-in-principle is not in the best interest of the residents of the Northwest Territories."

They go on to list a number of what they consider deficiencies in the agreement-in-principle.

For example, they write that an allocation of $65 million for running devolved programs would be $20 million short of what is needed.

According to Roland, the federal government offer in negotiations was much less and based on current spending.

"Their estimate was just over $30 million," he said. "Our estimate was based on how we felt the program should be delivered and we settled for the $65 million, because it is an improvement from what's being done."

Roland said the estimate of a $20-million shortfall comes from the GNWT's work on a business case for how it believes the programs should be delivered, not the way they are currently being delivered.

"Once we take over delivery of these programs, we'll have to sit down and work on the design of how we would enhance and improve that delivery," he said.

The anti-devolution letter also points out the agreement-in-principle would limit resource benefits to five per cent of the GNWT's annual budget.

"The five per cent figure that's being discussed in regards to the devolution agreement-in-principle is, for no better words, a red herring, because the five per cent cap is not part of the devolution agreement," Roland said, explaining the cap is established by the federal Department of Finance for all three territories as part of territorial formula financing and resource revenue.

In fact, he noted all provinces are faced with a cap, unless they are not a receiving province, such as Alberta.

Roland also rejected the letter's claim aboriginal people were not fully consulted on the agreement-in-principle as required by the Canadian constitution.

There have been many meetings and discussions going back years, he said, noting several chapters in the agreement-in-principle were added because of the involvement of aboriginal groups.

"So quite clearly, we feel we have done the work that's necessary in consultation," he said.

As for the letter's prediction that devolution will be an issue in the coming territorial election, Roland admitted some people will try to make it an issue.

However, he said people all over the NWT see the need to put control of the North in its rightful place - the North.

"So I think, if it is an issue, it will be one that I think will be confirmed by a majority of people of the territories to say we do need to move forwards, not backwards."

Erasmus said the letter is part of a public campaign on the devolution agreement-in-principle.

"It's not a good deal for the North," he said. "It would make us more dependent on the feds than ever."

Erasmus explained the campaign was agreed upon at a Dene Nation meeting in late February in Dettah. The letter has received

positive reaction, he added.

"The point I think people need to understand is that our people are not against devolution, not against it at all," he said. "We all agree that, as people living in the North, we have to have control of the resources, the water and the land."

Erasmus said the Dene Nation will also work to make devolution a prominent issue in the federal election.

"We need to make sure the candidate that gets in supports the position taken by our people," he said.

In reaction to Roland's view that aboriginal groups contributed to the agreement-in-principle, Erasmus noted the federal and territorial governments are the parties to the deal.

"We were involved in an ad hoc way, but not full participants," he explained.

Erasmus also stands by the letter's financial analysis of the agreement-in-principle.

At the Dettah meeting, the Dene Nation also received a mandate from chiefs to support regions that may decide to challenge the devolution agreement-in-principle in court.

The Dettah meeting also established a committee representing the five regions to work on what they want in a devolution agreement.

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