It makes sense when it came time to decide on what type of government the territory would have that something not entirely mirroring the British Westminster system was deemed appropriate.
After all, this is a land that was brutally colonized for generations by Europeans - many of whom were of British ancestry.
True consensus government, as the territory recognizes it, got its start in the late 1970s as indigenous leaders and other Northerners began to assert their rights over the land and Ottawa allowed a move toward "responsible government" with a fully elected legislative assembly. To reflect indigenous custom, elected members sit in a circle.
But experts and scholars generally consider an absence of political parties as a sign of political immaturity in a governing system. There are also some pretty clear examples of how the current consensus form of government has some serious flaws.
Two prominent residents of Inuvik spoke out about consensus government in News/North last week, ("Time to agree on ending consensus government?" May 8). The premise of the report was to determine what, if any benefits were to be had with both of the town's MLAs - Robert C. McLeod (Twin Lakes) and Alfred Moses (Boot Lake) - being in cabinet.
 | "Maybe by having our MLAs as ministers we have been getting some benefit. I just haven't seen it at this particular juncture." - Jozef Carnogursky, Nihtat Gwich'in Council president
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Under a political party system of government, it's generally assumed that constituencies represented by politicians in the governing side of the aisle will fare somewhat better over time than those with opposition MLAs. The icing on the cake for a constituent is to have his or her MLA be in cabinet, as that inner-circle decides on policy and spending and can direct projects or infrastructure money to their home turf.
"Having two ministers from Inuvik, the question is, is that a good thing?" asked Jozef Carnogursky, president of the Nihtat Gwich'in Council. "Sometimes it can be but when you're going through budget cuts and processes like we're going through now, you don't really have anybody that can advocate for you publicly because of the government-cabinet solidarity issue."
Joe Lavoie, Inuvik town councillor and businessperson said, he has doubted consensus government for a long time.
"I believe consensus government has run its course in the territory," he said. "It's good in theory, like I suppose all political systems are, but we don't have the opposition that's calling the government to task.
As the Yukon and the rest of Canada knows, having a party system means there is a main opposition party and perhaps a third or fourth party holding the government's feet to the fire every day. While that does result in some theatrics for TV during Question Period, it does make for a governing party that must work pretty hard to stay in power.
Critics of the consensus system wonder how anything really gets done, as there is little motivation for cabinet to work extra hard to move files through the bureaucracy. Also, as the regular MLAs - the unofficial opposition aren't assigned shadow cabinet roles as is done under party politics, they simply jump from issue to issue and never really make a mark.
Minister McLeod said being in cabinet might take away his ability to stand up in the House during session and raise constituency issues but he can still raise those issues meeting with ministers individually. He said governments in party systems often have majorities, meaning they can push through budgets and legislation by strength of numbers.
News/North says that's exactly what we need more of in the NWT - progress.
That's called accomplishment. That's called building a future instead of talking about one.
Consensus government might be fine for a student body or a city council but perhaps it's not best for larger, more complicated jurisdictions.
A proper Westminster system of government - and we certainly don't want to consider a Republic, as in the United States - includes political parties.
It doesn't mean we have to lose sight of all indigenous traditions, just incorporate them into a better system of government.
Still no transparency from Nutrition North
Nunavut/News North - Monday, May 15, 2017
Last month, North West Company bought its own airline to reduce the cost of freight. It's a smart business decision if there are savings to be had but customers have a right to be concerned about what this means for them.
The cost of food is high in Nunavut, and Nutrition North was intended to reduce costs for Northerners. To do so, the federal government shifted its funding from Canada Post to retailers. The funds were redirected to the companies that are already shipping food, in hopes that the consumer will see the results by way of discounted food prices.
Discuss the program with anyone in Nunavut, and you are sure to find most still think prices are too high.
If the program was supposed to bring prices in the North in line with southern retailers, where are the savings?
Cauliflower hit sky-high prices everywhere last year but in Nunavut it's still in the $10 to $11 range. Metro, which sends its flyers to Nunavut mailboxes, this week is selling cauliflower for $5 each.
Its website also lists English cucumbers at $1.50 each. In Iqaluit, they're selling for $4 each.
These are just examples, and readers will likely have their own.
On the flip side, we all know how much air travel costs and that discounts are rare. Like air travellers, retailers are captive to the prices - and schedule - set by the soon-to-end monopoly of Canadian North and First Air.
But there's no escaping the fact that North West Company is in pretty good stead. The company reported a $15 million profit in the first quarter of 2016, and its Northern operations were its growth engine, according to a report to its shareholders.
We're all for a private business staying in business but now that private firms are in the business of taking public money the federal government needs to insist on higher accountability.
It's also in the best interests of the retailers to be as transparent as possible about the subsidies customers are getting on each item. With greater transparency, customers will be more understanding when the costs of food, fuel, and freight go up due to factors out of the retailers' control.
As retailers find new ways to cut costs - buying an airline is an extreme way - savings need to be passed on to customers. If savings are not transferred, shareholder greed will jeopardize the Northern cash cow when customers stop accepting the mystery pricing strategies and the government is forced to step in once again with a cost-saving program that bypasses retailers.
Bad PR from afar
Weekend Yellowknifer - Friday, May 12, 2017
A young man travels halfway around the world seeking opportunity and adventure but dies tragically in a workplace accident outside Inuvik.
This we do know. We also know 19- year-old David Vinnicombe was killed when a heavy piece of equipment rolled on him.
But the circumstances leading up to his death largely remains a mystery - not only for the public but for his grieving family, two of whom flew to Yellowknife from Australia last week for a National Day of Mourning event hosted by the Northern Territories Federation of Labour and Union of Northern Workers.
There, Vinnicombe's father, Robbie Vinnicombe and aunt, Jacqui Vinnicombe, spoke of their frustration trying to get information from the Workers' Safety and Compensation Commission, which is still investigating nearly a year after their loved one's death.
Robbie Vinnicombe said there is "lots of room for improvement" when it comes to how the safety and compensation commission keeps families in the loop. He told Yellowknifer his family had little information about the investigation, leading them to believe it won't be effective.
The family is encouraging Justice Minister Louis Sebert and Glen Abernethy, the minister responsible for the commission, to appoint a territorial ombudsman. A person in such a position would typically be expected to investigate and report on government agencies to ensure they are following policies and procedures.
Whether the safety and compensation commission is doing a good job investigating the case we cannot say. A spokesperson for the department said the commission has one year to complete its investigation.
This doesn't sound unreasonable considering how long other accident investigations, like those involving airplane crashes for instance, take a similar amount of time to complete.
People expect due diligence when it comes to accident investigations where there are fatalities.
The problem in this case is one of public relations, or lack there of.
More than anything, the Vinnicombes appear to have simply hoped for someone with a sympathetic ear to take their calls. What they got instead was the cold hand of bureaucracy.
Being able to complete investigations unimpeded is important but so is answering questions from loved ones even if they are coming from halfway around the world and the answers are incomplete.
Buying local just got easier
Weekend Yellowknifer - Friday, May 12, 2017
The city is drafting a new 'buy local' policy that lifts the threshold under which the city can freely choose a local or Northern supplier over a southern one.
Purchases of goods or services under $300,000 and construction contracts under $7.5 million may soon be easier to get for Northern businesses, if the city puts this policy in place.
The city is on the right track with this one.
Anything that can help keep the business lights on in the North and locally should be welcomed with open arms.
Good policy requires good watchdogs.
It's human nature to take the path of least resistance and council needs to make sure city administration is doing all it can to ensure city money is flowing to local businesses wherever possible.
The new policy should be written to include a regular and public report to council outlining where money has been spent and who or which businesses it has gone to.
City managers and department heads should expect to be called onto the carpet whenever a dime that could have been spent locally leaves the city.
Policy writers should also ensure the definition of 'local business' is not so broad that it includes anyone with a website and a local post office box.
Perhaps a registry of bona fide local businesses, suppliers and contractors could be set up to ensure proper oversight down the road.
Connecting taxation to services raises serious questions
Inuvik Drum - Thursday, May 11, 2016
Finance Minister Robert McLeod didn't have much to offer on the question of whether the profits from Inuvik liquor sales should go directly to programs that deal with addiction in Inuvik.
The money is funnelled into the GNWT's general revenue fund, from which the government takes and puts to use in ways of its own choosing.
Jonathon Michel hoped just 10 per cent of the Inuvik profits could go to funding the John Wayne Kiktorak Centre, a community resource that aims to combat some of the damaging effects of alcohol addiction.
McLeod has a good point that elected politicians have a greater ability to decide what programs to run, and how, when the money is not tied to any specific use, but what is lost in the general revenue system is transparency and accountability.
Governments always prefer as much latitude as they can get for spending taxpayers' money. Without tying Inuvik liquor profits to any one thing, the government can do whatever it wants with it.
A great example in recent Canadian history on this subject is the introduction of the income tax in 1917.
It was originally envisioned as a temporary wartime effort to help fund the First World War, which unfortunately was not placed with any time limit to end, but merely with the suggestion that it be reviewed a year or two after the war.
Alexander Maclean, finance critic at the time, rightly guessed that it would long outlast that timeframe.
And so still we have it today, no one connects it to war anymore, and its use is up to the whims of the sitting government.
Throwing all the money in a big pile to choose from certainly makes the government's job more fun and makes the government more powerful in what it can do.
That does have benefits, as it means the government can more flexibly adapt to the needs of the day. But people need to see the effect of their taxes to continue believing in the rightness of their collection.
It's hard not to grumble about the bite taken out of each paycheque when it's not clear where that money is going.
Did it go for the road here, or to building a new facility on the other side of the country? What's it matter if it would all be covered by debt anyway?
The government taketh, and the people get a vague idea of what it giveth.
Though it restricts the government's power, tying funding to programs or services certainly improves accountability and transparency.
If profits from Inuvik liquor sales were legislated to go toward funding Inuvik programs, everyone would be able to see that connection.
It would also give people the feeling they are contributing to the good of their own community when they are buying liquor, knowing where the profits are going.
It could well be that Inuvik gets more benefit out of its liquor sales going into general revenue than it would if the sales were tied to being spent in Inuvik. But who would know? That's the public relations problem with general revenue funding.
The government is rarely going to legislate a limit to its own power. But in the name of transparency, such an idea could be considered here.
Tourism is a good investment
Yellowknifer - Wednesday, May 10, 2017
The Northwest Territories is very fortunate to be a subject of fascination around the world.
The Northern lights, Dene and Inuvialuit culture, the unimaginably big fish lurking in some of the world's most remote lakes, big-game hunting, epic kayak and canoe trips, camping, the midnight sun and the prospect of driving to the Arctic Ocean are all intoxicating draws for people south of the 60th parallel and beyond.
This is apparent simply by the fact that more than 50,000 people went to the Northern Frontier Visitors Centre last year, up a whopping 400 per cent from 2007.
This is an incredible opportunity to grow the tourism industry.
With the Northern Frontier Visitors Centre set to close, Yellowknife needs a new pit stop for tourists. Unfortunately, the territorial government has only committed to finding solutions for a temporary location. This level of commitment is unacceptable.
It's high time for the territorial government to partner with the city to finding funding for a big, bright, inviting, informative visitors centre which incorporates a cultural aspect.
According to documents from the Northern Frontier Visitors Centre annual general meeting last week, a 1,000-square-metre building would cost between $3.7 million and $5.25 million. To compare, in January, the federal government announced it would cover 25 per cent of an all-weather road to Whati, which would help support a Fortune Minerals exploration project north of the community. This road is expected to come with an estimated $150-million price tag, which makes the cost of a visitor's centre look like peanuts.
The territorial government needs to look at the potential of the tourism sector through the same lens it looks at diamond mines.
There is potential to draw a lot of money not only into the Yellowknife economy but to the communities. And unlike diamonds, worldwide interest in the great wonders of this territory is a renewable resource.
Don't let sun set on A New Day
Yellowknifer - Wednesday, May 10, 2017
A New Day is a good program. The public, politicians, program participants, facilitators and even a Department of Justice report all attest to this fact.
So why does the Department of Justice seem hell bent on destroying it?
Right now, A New Day is facilitated through the Tree of Peace Friendship Centre as a full-time program with group and one-on-one counselling sessions. The department is currently looking for somebody to take over once the contract is up in June.
But in issuing a new request for proposals earlier this year, it made some curious changes to A New Day.
It would become part-time, as needed, with group sessions only. Even more curious, the department wasn't going to require bidders to have expertise in counselling.
The department has since augmented the request for proposals to require bidders to have counselling experience and the part-time, as needed aspect is now changed to "all-inclusive hourly rates for the facilitators."
Yellowknife Centre Julie Green thinks the department is breaking A New Day.
Yellowknifer agrees.
It's mind-boggling that, considering how much money it costs to send domestic violence offenders through the court system again and again, bureaucrats would think paring down this program is a good use of resources.
At this point if A New Day is going to be saved, there is going to have to be a big, unequivocal push from politicians to force the hand of the Department of Justice, because as it looks right now, department bureaucrats seem to have buried their heads in the sand.
True sense of community is a powerful thing
Editorial Comment by Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News - Wednesday, May 10, 2017
I wasn't able to get around to many Pakallak Tyme events thanks to the same ailment that prematurely ended my hockey officiating career but those I did catch were top-notch all the way and everyone seemed to be having a really good time.
And that's what Pakallak Tyme is all about.
I was still laughing to myself when I returned to my office following a visit to the bouncy castle.
I haven't seen kids having that much fun in a long time.
Some of them rocked so hard, bouncing at full speed during their minute in the castle, I don't know how they could walk, let alone in a fairly straight line, once they were let out.
Did I say walk? Some of those kids went past me, covering the few feet between the bouncy castle and the obstacle course, at speeds I'm sure are illegal in some parts of the world.
I also saw more moms and dads having fun with their kids as a family unit than I've noticed in a while.
That felt very good to see. These years don't last long, folks. Enjoy them!
There seemed to be no shortage of volunteers helping out. No matter how good the games and activities being offered, that can often be the difference between a great community event and a lot of people walking around muttering under their breath.
There was a real sense of community surrounding the Pakallak Tyme activities I was at, and that remains as cool to me today as it did when I was a kid.
I've always felt at home in Rankin and, other than the incredible hockey of course, that sense of community has always been one of the strongest attractions for me here.
And, we get lucky a lot with some of the people who, one way or another, end up calling Rankin home.
I grew up in Cape Breton, in a little fishing village just a 10-minute drive from the rough-and-tumble town of Glace Bay, going through my teenage years in the 1970s.
The Cape in those days was driven by coal mines and steel plants.
People worked hard and played hard, and, believe me, folks, I was no saint in my youth.
That's why I froze, my eyes darting around trying to feed me data, and a blind panic started to slowly rise up inside me when I came around an aisle at the Northern store this past week and came face-to-face with some type of flashback apparition that looked an awful lot like Mr. Terry Kent.
Imagine my relief to find he was, indeed, the real Terry Kent and, seconds later, I was enjoying a handshake and a hug from a good friend of many years who I honestly didn't think I'd see again in this lifetime.
That's the type of thing a town with a real sense of community can create.
I'm going to really enjoy seeing Terry every day, or second day, at the Northern for the next month, and them I'm going to miss the heck out of him when he leaves again.
Another tell-tale sign that a strong sense of community exists is when a town tends to be a bit overly generous when it comes to supporting charitable events and local fundraisers, and the folks of Rankin Inlet have that down in spades!
I'm sure almost everyone in all seven of our Kivalliq communities feels the same way about their community, and with good reason, but I will maintain there's something special at work in Rankin Inlet until the day I'm called home for the final time.
It truly is a wonderful community to call your own.
