Scope of government intervention widened

Page 8

Robert Nault may tell First Nations people that his powers under the Indian Act intrude unacceptably into their lives and he wants to stop it with his First Nations governance act, but that hasn't stopped him from exercising those powers in the Northwestern Ontario community of Pikangikum.

That's how First Nation leaders see Nault's imposition of what they call an "Indian agent" on the remote, suicide plagued First Nation.

A letter signed by Indian Affairs' director of funding services in the region dated May 10 advised chief and council that, since the band's comprehensive funding arrangement had expired and no new arrangement had been signed by the band, the department would begin supplying services directly. The department then hired London, Ont. consulting firm A.D. Morrison and Associates to serve as the minister's agent in the community.

'The company will be acting as agent for the minister, and not in any way as a co-manager, receiver-manager or third-party administrator of the First Nation," the letter read. "The company is being retained by the minister as the minister's agent to deliver programs and services to community members on behalf of the minister."

That means, basically, the council has absolutely no say in how funds arriving in its community will be used.

Chief Louie Quill accused Nault of using 19th century tactics to get what he wants.

"We are now going back to one of the saddest parts of Canada's history, just so the minister can control us as he sees fit."

While the sides fight over their political differences, the reality being faced by all First Nations across the country is that the minister is now willing to impose a form of outside management on band councils for social reasons. Previously, councils were faced with government-imposed third-party managers only if their financial situation was in deficit.

Chief Quill said his band's audits have been clear of any deficit or other problem for two years -they're in a surplus position.

Nault told Windspeaker he made the move because Pikangikum is one of the world's worst suicide hotspots. Since 1990, he said, there have been more than 40 suicides in the community and hundreds of attempts. The move was only made after the band and the department, which can't work out differences related to funding agreements, went to Federal Court. The band challenged the department's right to impose outside management when the band wasn't in deficit. The court ruled the minister had a compelling reason to take action.

Ministerial staff said the minister had to resort to a little-used administrative device in the Indian Act regulations to impose the outside manager because the existing policy does not provide any legal method to do so when a band is below the eight per cent deficit threshold.

"This is not about the heavy hand of a minister," said Nault. "Any smart politician who only cares about politics would not intervene in this situation and be accused . . . that somehow I must have some sort of motive. My only motive is to help a community who is in crisis. I take my leadership role very seriously," he said. "I've tried, over the last two years now as a minister, to get myself involved with the community through co-management to make sure we could improve things. That has not occurred. I want to remind everyone that this is the courts here who intervened. It was not the minister of Indian Affairs, and that seems to be forgotten by a lot of reporters these days."

Questioned about whether the move is going in a direction away from his statements on governance reform, Nault said that forcing a band council into third-party management is a power his department has right now; if First Nations people don't like it they should say so.

"The consultation is intended to do what is set out -to ask people for their advice," he said. "If people don't like third-party management and are opposed to it and don't want the government of Canada to intervene, there re a number of ways of [showing] that. One is, of course, governance. It should be talked about at the consultations how governance would change. At this point under the Indian Act, the minister does have an obligation, both legally and a fiduciary obligation, to make sure services are delivered."

He said the situation in Pikangikum was unacceptable and that was reason enough to justify his recent actions.

"It is a tragic story, no doubt. But one that I don't believe for a minute will change if we continue to leave it the way it was because it's been that way since 1990," he said.

Native leaders suggest the timing of his move reveals the minister is turning up the heat on chiefs who refuse to participate in his governance act initiative. Nault said the move has nothing to do with the political battle he's currently engaged in with the Assembly of First Nations over the governance consultations. But during a scrum in Ottawa after Question Period on June 6, the minister showed that an earlier remark by Assembly of First Nations national chief Matthew Coon Come, who challenged the minister to prove he has the best interests of First Nations in mind by doing something about Pikangikum, a struggling First Nation in Nault's own riding, had struck a nerve. Asked if he was aware the national chief was trying to make political use of the Pikangikum situation to discredit the minister's claim that he is trying to change the Indian Act for the benefit of First Nations, the minister fired back at Coon Come.

"I'm pleased to see that the national chief has an interest in Pikangikum," he told reporters. "If you look back on the record you'll find that the national chief himself asked me over a year ago when are we going to do something about the massive suicide in my own backyard? Well that's exactly what I'm trying to do."

Chief Quill is furious the department seems to be blaming his council for the suicides. He, like many other chiefs, blames the department for not providig enough funding for housing, recreation and other basic needs that would help ease the poverty and despair in remote First Nation communities.

Quill has been busy since May 10. On May 31, he was able to meet privately with the prime minister at a Liberal fundraiser. A week later, he hosted Coon Come on his home territory.