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Report adds to funding controversy

Author

Lesley Crossingham

Volume

4

Issue

1

Year

1986

Page 3

The promised shake-up in the funding mechanism for Native political organizations continues to be the centre of controversy after a new report commissioned by the Department of Indian Affairs and the Secretary of State was made public this week.

However, despite dark premonitions by many members of the Native community, the report holds many surprises, not the least of which is its criticism of the way Ottawa funds Native groups at the national, regional and local levels.

For example, they found that the Secretary of State makes decisions based on "out-dated formulas and just plain guess work." The report also recommends that despite problems, the government should keep things the way they are.

However, one recommendation is causing some controversy. The report recommends that in order to bypass the bureaucracy and yet give Native people more say in the funding of organizations, that a committee be set up.

The committee, which would be dominated by Native people, rather than civil servants, would be appointed by the federal cabinet and could only be changed by the minister.

However, the recommendation that the nine or eleven member committee would include some government officials and some distinguished non-Native citizens is causing some concern in Native circles.

"I am worried about who will sit on this committee," says Indian Association of Alberta (IAA) vice president for Treaty 6, Percy Potts.

"And I am not too happy with some non-Native people being included. We don't want non-Native people telling us what to do. We've had enough of that."

The consultants contacted more than 200 Native organizations, including the IAA. However, according to sources, president Wilf McDougall had refused to meet with the consultants.

The funding controversy started a year ago when the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) declared it had a debt of about $2 million. Indian Affairs Minister Crombie was forced to step in and freeze the assembly's funds.

At the time he threatened a big shake-up and suggested that funding for political organizations be given to the bands or that organizations would be accountable to their communities rather than the government.

A team of three consulting firms was hired last August to decide how to divide the $24 million funding between the 57 Indian, Metis and Inuit political organizations.

The report says the new committee should be in place by the beginning of the 1987 fiscal year but until then the present funding arrangements should stay as they are.

Crombie has declined to comment on the report. His office says the minister is awaiting input, comments and reports on Native peoples' reaction to the report before making any final decision.