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Cece Hodgson-McCauley
Guest comment
Monday, March 17, 2008
The isolated Sahtu region went through an exercise March 11-12 called "Funding a Balance," from the past towards a sustainable strategy. Leaders from corporations, boards, as well as resource people, were there. It was not open to the public.
Through moccasin telegraph, the voices of locals say that any plan and strategizing for the future should involve everyone. They should have done like the Gwich'in in the Delta - before the land claims, field workers went to each family for their input. After that, the leaders had a free hand to plan our future.
Anyhow, I was very pleased to attend a meeting of the MAC group. The group is made up of the Gwich'in Development Corporation and Denendeh Investments Inc., as well as four big companies: Flint, Kiewit, Ledcor, and North American. They were in Norman Wells to meet with the leaders and local contractors. The meeting with contractors was positive. They put out an eight-page information paper. If anyone out there wants a copy, phone me and I'll fax it to you because most information papers never reach people.
Here's another good point. The MAC group is working with Aurora College on mobile trade training - an idea that should have been in place many years ago. I bet we have Miki O'Kane (Company Director in Inuvik) to thank for that. Talk about dynamic women!
The MAC group is bending backwards to do the right thing. The bureaucrats in Ottawa inform them that the feds will not move until they have the OK from the GNWT and local people.
All I have to say is that all the past GNWT ministers and premiers failed us big time. So the new government, under Honourable Floyd Roland, must move today on the letter of support for the highway for the local people. As far as I'm concerned it is a delaying tactic by the bureaucrats in the pass, on the Dempster and the road to Wrigley, to Yellowknife and Fort Nelson, B.C.
The government didn't ask for your blessing, they just went ahead and built roads. When Berger said there would be no pipeline for 10 years because people said so, well, only six years or so later they built the pipeline to Alberta from Norman Wells.
You must realize if the country needs it they will build it. Simple as that. Our territory will need the road soon because of the sovereignty issue. They will need a road to the Arctic ocean to move people and equipment, etc. So the quicker they build the road, the better for the people of Sahtu. Time for us to have a break from isolation and have cheap goods!
Thanks to the MAC group maybe the highway will happen soon. The door is open for Sahtu to join the MAC group. Let's just see if the leaders have the business acumen to grab this deal for the future of their people. It will be a benefit for all.
Time for ordinary, grassroots people to tell their leaders that leaders and the people who sit on boards travel with all expenses paid, with honoraria, etc. They are lucky to bring food and things home to their families so they like the world they live in. But it is the local people who never travel anywhere and must pay a huge price to get by that need a break and the country needs a road. They will build it so the sooner they build, the sooner the ordinary family will enjoy travel, cheap food, take families on holidays by driving to Edmonton, Ottawa or New York. Right?
They say the three territories are Canada's future. In reality the world is eyeing us and our riches. Development is coming and you can't stop it so we must be part of it.
- Cece Hodgson-McCauley is the founding chief of the Inuvik Dene band and will remain honourary chief for life. She can be reached at fax (867) 587-3003 or by phone (867) 587-3037.