Nahendeh MLA candidates answered questions and shared their views at a debate in Liidlii Kue/Fort Simpson on Nov. 2.
Organized by Dehcho First Nations, the event ran two and a half hours. The riding is the most hotly-contested in the NWT with six candidates seeking office.
Here’s some of what the MLA hopefuls had to say.
Hillary Deneron
“I’d like to thank the Dehcho First Nations for hosting this forum. It’s something we were all kind of hoping would happen, so mahsi for that. I’m from Fort Liard. My name is Hillary Deneron. My dad is Harry Deneron, and my mom is Joanne Deneron. I bring to the table my political expertise and knowledge.”
When asked what ability she possesses but had not explicitly been asked to speak on throughout the evening she replied, “Communication.”
“There seems to be a lack of communication on all levels, not just in the local level but government to government,” said Deneron. “We need to be working together. I’ve always been strong on the importance of communication. At the end of the day, in my travels, people want to be heard. They want that communication. So that’s something I’m strong in, communication, and just being open on all levels of government, community members, getting back to the importance of community members and leadership.”
Josh Campbell
“You might have heard my voice from the radio, or from the campaign trail with Dennis Bevington and Norman Yakeleya a few years ago. I’ve been sitting around the Dehcho Assembly tables since 2008, where I got to shake hands with many of the Elders that aren’t with us here today. And from that time until now I take very serious what is going on over here. I’m tired of hearing promises from the GNWT, and through words like devolution, and using the carrot and stick approach with the Dehcho and Akaitcho.”
On the topic of food security, Campbell said, “You might not know this but I’m a seventh generation potato farmer, that’s why I love the (TV) show Yellowstone so much. And you can’t grow the produce in Yellowknife that you can in the Dehcho.”
Mavis Cli-Michaud
“My name is Mavis Cli-Michaud. I’m a candidate for the Nahendeh region. Our region has come to a crossroads and all the people of Nehendeh have the power to change the political landscape. It starts with a vote, your vote. I’m calling on you, on Nov. 14, to mark your ballot for change. Together we can do this, to show we dare to use words like change, hope and progress, because there is so much to do and accomplish.”
When asked about climate change, she said, “We need to listen to traditional knowledge. We’ve always been very much aware of what’s been happening with our land. Been aware of the warming of the climate — all the warning signs were there. We have gone through a tremendous tragedy over the last summer. What did we learn from that? I know there are studies that are going to come out from this.
“What did we learn? What can we do better? How can we move forward at all levels of government? Not just with the GNWT, but whether municipality, or our Indigenous governments? And the federal government. So we need to work together.”
Sharon Allen
“Sharon suzhe, Liidlii Kue gots’eh ahte. My name is Sharon Nahanni–Allen. I am from Fort Simpson, Northwest Territories. I was raised in Tthekehdelį – Jean Marie River, by my parents Gabriel and Bella Sanguez, but my parents are Archie Horsey and Mable Nahanni.”
When asked about food security, she said she planned to “have food subsidy reviews, support agriculture, locally grown food, and address large grocery chains, to make sure they bring the prices of food down, because Northmart/Northern is prevalent here and it’s prevalent in other communities. Other communities don’t have grocery stores, and that is a problem. So Jean Marie has to come here, Wrigley has to come here, and sometimes people from (Fort) Liard come here as well, and Nahanni Butte and Saamba K’e. So, we have an issue in the North with pricing and with the carbon tax, that just increases the cost of food, of bringing it here as well.”
Shane Thompson
“I am the son of Gordon and Mary Thompson. I was born and raised in Hay River. For the last 31 years, this has been my home. This is where my grandchildren are, where three of my children are. I’ve had the pleasure of being MLA for the last eight years. It’s been an interesting opportunity to try to make things better for the residents of the Northwest Territories.”
When DFN Grand Chief Herb Norwegian asked what candidates plan to do to further the Dehcho Process during their four years as Nahendeh MLA, Thompson pointed out that the Acho Dene Koe First Nation in Fort Liard has chosen to pursue its own land claim and the Nahanni Butte Dene Band is deciding what it will do.
“I’ve had the opportunity to meet with the grand chief, with the premier, and one of the things we talked about was what were the issues, what were the challenges that we needed to fix? We fixed one and then we were supposed to meet this May and come up with some of the other issues that we can fix. That was the challenge because we were dealing with the forest fires, and so, we didn’t get to do that. I can honestly say the grand chief and his negotiating team brought forth a strong platform for where they wanted to go. The premier was working with him… My question is, what are the challenges? What is holding up where we are? And that is what needs to be fixed. We had the one issue, we fixed that, unfortunately, we had the others there. But, you need to understand, you have to be reflective, that this is a riding that has the Dehcho process, the ADK Process, and you have other communities that are deciding what they want to do. So, we have to work together collaboratively — it’s just not one process. Thank you.”
Les Wright
Les Wright has been a village councillor for the last two years.
When asked what candidates could do to better support local youth, he said, “I see the difference between when I grew up and nowadays. Back in the day, everybody went on the land. I spent all winter and spring hunting and trapping and we don’t have that anymore. I’d like to see more on-the-land training, with the Liidlii Kue tourism centre on top of the hill. I’d like to see that utilized — get the kids out, and start there.”
In his closing statement, he said, “I’m never going to be a politician, I’m always going to be a public servant.”
