RCMP: Use the media to warn, gather informationYellowknifer - Wednesday, May 17, 2017
It took three days and some gentle prodding by Yellowknifer for the RCMP to put out a news release last week seeking information from the public on a report that two strangers attacked a 15-year-old girl on her way to school.
The police justify the delay by insisting the attack was an "isolated incident" and that public safety was not at risk.
It's an odd response to say the least. Even if police have information ensuring them that the incident was indeed "isolated" and no else is at risk, it brushes aside an important fact – namely that a violent crime has been committed and suspects are still at large.
It's particularly concerning the crime involves a youth on her way to school in broad daylight.
If the RCMP is at all serious about asking the public's help in identifying suspects, waiting three days to alert the public is an odd way to advance its efforts in finding the assailants.
A more immediate alert would put the public on the lookout, better help identify possible eyewitnesses and provide suspects less opportunities to evade arrest.
The RCMP are careful about asking the public for help and for good reason – one doesn't want to overwhelm police with trivial observations and commentary that bog down investigative efforts.
Yellowknifer understands how having to answer questions from media is time consuming, even irritating.
To this we say, when seeking culprits in serious crimes let the media be your trumpet and the public your many extra sets of eyes.
The RCMP can rest assured
Yellowknifer can be a valuable tool, one police can use to get the word out about crimes and criminals.
Don't be shy RCMP, use us.
Creative business types wantedYellowknifer - Wednesday, May 17, 2017
The city should get full marks for its innovative approach to sparking business growth downtown.
A contest is being held awarding one year of free downtown commercial space to the winner.
The city has witnessed a business flight from the downtown core in recent years as retailers struggled with high rents, competition from online sales, and social problems related to loitering and public intoxication.
It will take some revitalization and enticement to draw them back. The city can start by focusing on the problem it is most able to address - the high cost of real estate. There may be some great ideas out there for a downtown business that are stifled by the cost of leasing retail space in the downtown core.
That said, the city's core is not a lost cause. The success of new businesses such as The Fat Fox Cafe and Birchwood Coffee Ko attest to that, as does the success of not-so-new businesses like Bijou Boutique.
And nothing encourages success like success. The more new and thriving businesses that pop up in the downtown core, the better it is for all businesses and the people who shop downtown.
There are other benefits to this contest beyond its function as new business incubator. It will give the city a sense for how much interest there is in developing storefront businesses in the downtown core. Presumably, if the city is overwhelmed with solid applicants and business concepts, all waiting for a little financial help to get off the ground, then a contest like this one can be repeated in the future.
Out on the final limbEditorial Comment by Darrell Greer
Kivalliq News - Wednesday, May 17, 2017
Famous NHL coach Toe Blake set the bar high on those who would make predictions on the game of hockey, but with so much playoff talk going on in the region, it's time to stick my neck out and go against the grain in my choices for the Cup final.
In the East, the Penguins are defying the lord of the injury bugs and keep pulling out big wins in their quest to defend the Stanley Cup.
These guys are on a mission and, as exciting as Ottawa's run has been, the Pens are playing a smart, disciplined style of hockey and sticking to their playbook.
The Senators stud D-man, Erik Karlsson, has been the main reason they've made the semifinals, but he's going to find the sledding a lot tougher against Pittsburgh's strong forecheck and smart play in the neutral zone.
With both Kris Letang and Trevor Daley out with injuries, the Pens have circled the wagons and are employing a team defense that their forwards have bought into.
And, while Karlsson can light it up offensively, he may find the going a little tougher in his own end of the rink with the likes of Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel darting around.
Add to that the confident and dangerous play of Jake Guentzel, the speed and quick shot of Conor Sheary and the bulldog approach of Patric Hornqvist, and the Sens defense is going to have to come up very big.
Finally, the hockey gods gave a deserving Marc-Andre Fleury his long-awaited chance and the best backup goalie in the NHL this year has delivered in spades.
Fleury has reclaimed the starter's role and has no intention of giving it back to Matt Murray, at least not this year.
And for all the talk about Ottawa's "vaunted" offense, the truth of the matter is the Sens had but three 20-goal scorers this year in Kyle Turris (27), Mike Hoffman (26) and Mark Stone (22).
This team goes as far as Karlsson takes them, and, up against Malkin and a very determined Crosby, my money's on the Pens.
The West is a whole different kettle of fish.
The stats say Nashville should take out Anaheim in four or five games, and many folks have jumped on the Predators bandwagon after they eliminated Chicago in four games during the opening round.
Add to that Nashville has taken the Ducks down the past three times they've met in the playoffs, and things don't look too rosy for the Ducks heading into their semifinal showdown.
I'm going way out on a limb and saying the Ducks are going to get it done based on two things: Ryan Getzlaf is one of the greatest team leaders in hockey, and he was on a mission in the first two rounds, and the Ducks defensive corps is smart, tough when it needs to be, fast, and very well balanced.
Nashville is going to have to keep coming at them, game in and game out, in hopes of wearing them down as the series progresses.
That very well may happen, but the Ducks blue-line corps is still a relatively young one and they should have plenty left in the tank if the series goes six or seven games.
There's no doubt the loss of 32-goal scorer Patrick Eaves is felt by the Ducks, but they still have plenty of pop with Getzlaf, Rickard Rakell (33 goals), a hot Jacob Silverberg and Corey Perry to match-up against Nashville's trio of key offensive weapons in Ryan Johansen, Viktor Arvidsson and Filip Forsberg.
In all probability this series will come down to the goaltenders, and the majority of hockey talkers seem to give Nashville a huge advantage here with Pekka Rinne between the pipes.
The branch is pretty thin where I'm at, but I'm picking the Ducks to eek it out on the strength of Getzlaf's leadership and their overall balance.
That sets-us up for a Pittsburgh vs. Anaheim final.
Go Ducks! Go Pens!
Consensus government has run its courseNorthwest Territories/News North - Monday, May 15, 2017
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
| 
|
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.
