Sagkeeng Chief & Council
Sagkeeng First Nation has Elected a new Chief and Council on April 3rd 2009 The newley Elected Chief is Mr.Donavan Fontaine,
General Assembly Notes July 5, 2007
It has been a very busy and very exciting time since being elected. We have been in office only three months and the expectations of the people have been very high that change will happen overnight.
As much as we want things to immediately change for the better, we have had to gradually introduce responsible practices and processes that may be unpopular because they are new and different from how other administrations managed the day to day business of the band.
We have finally launched our Title Claim and this is a major break through for Sagkeeng. It is something that should be supported rather than opposed, and many feel that if you oppose the Claim, you are simply opposing Sagkeeng. We acknowledge that some community members are not happy with the Claim, but I ask should individuals hold Sagkeeng’s future generations hostage while we wait for government to do the right thing? It is time for Sagkeeng to say “we have waited long enough.”
We have to take charge of the issue because it involves our traditional territory which is both our past and our future. Government will do nothing so long as Sagkeeng does nothing and I will not allow government to deny our rights and industry to reap all the benefits while we remain poor.
Finally after all these years, we will also be moving forward on Sagkeeng’s Specific Claims. This administration has made a commitment to start and put serious attention and effort towards the issues of: the purported 1926 Surrender, the CN Rail, the 3 Hydro Towers, the Erosion, and the TLE.
These issues have been nothing but talk for years and because it has been nothing but talk, people don’t take it seriously. This will change and this will change very soon.
Sagkeeng has the attention of the national media with the Claim. For the first time in many years there is positive news and headlines coming from Sagkeeng. We must be realistic that there may not be a settlement within the next two years, but I assure you that we will make best efforts to move our issues forward at the highest levels.
We are optimistic that the recent announcement on an improved Claims process and the associated legislation that will be co-written by First Nations means that we will see progress sooner rather than later in these areas. This is so crucial for our future. This means that our community which is one of the largest reserves in Canada will not have to survive on INAC handouts. We will be able to take charge of our own destiny while holding the Crown accountable for fulfilling their fiduciary obligations to Sagkeeng.
A majority of my calls have been bread and butter day to day things that Sagkeeng’s managers are paid to administer. I believe that Chief and Council have to use our time better as two years is short. We were elected to be leaders and take our issues to the highest political level possible and we want to allow our managers to do their jobs. I campaigned on a promise to the people to change the way things have been done year after year with little results. And that is what I committed to do and that is exactly what I and this council is doing.
The chief should be a politician and leader, not an administrator. I get complaints because I am not available as often as people want me to be. My activity report shows that I have not been running away or being a Hermit somewhere. I have been working hard and it’s all been for Sagkeeng.
Sagkeeng has a good administration and an excellent CEO to deal with day to day band management. And we are always trying to make services better for our people. As a first step individuals should call the Managers. That is their jobs, to administer and manage. I am serving Sagkeeng better by not having my hands in every program and every pot of money. I refuse to assume too much power and I refuse to be a dictator and I will let and instruct our managers do their jobs.
There is an expectation and an attitude in Sagkeeng that Chief & Council are like a Bankers and can easily loan money for anything at any given moment. We receive constant loan requests for everything from Hydro Bills, Rent, Travel, Credit Cards, Phone, Car, and believe it or not Furniture.
It is true that we make many financial decisions of all kinds, but we would be completely negligent and irresponsible if we abandoned basic principles of good management, accountability and responsibility. Would the community prefer we used money intended for roads, housing, education, and health to buy couches or to pay for somebody’s credit card? I don’t think so.
This Council must never forget that the priorities most important to Sagkeeng are those that benefit the community as a whole and not just a few. We can never choose against paying for essential services that have to be provided while we are already short changed and under funded in these areas. True some of these things funded are treaty rights. However, loans for furniture or Hydro Bills are not a treaty right!!
Don’t get me wrong I am not a cold hearted chief without compassion. We have given out a few loans to Residential School Survivors with the promise that it will be paid back by their Lawyers. We continue to help with Funerals and other Donations. But our finances are in such a position that we simply cannot loan or give money to everybody with a request. We want to get out of co-management this fall and this is not the way to do it.
One priority that we will pursue is the establishment of a loan fund so that we can meet the needs of those in the community who can repay a loan. Be reminded that banks try to lend only to people who will pay back and we will also try to only loan money to those that will pay it back. There have been many loans over the years from the Band to Band members and many of those are still on the books, and some have even been written off because people refuse to pay them back. People forget or don’t consider that the loans that have been given out in the past come from the pockets of our children and our elders. It is our future generations’ money that we are safeguarding and we need to manage their money in a good way.
There has been recent criticism that we have spent more of the gaming and VLT monies then the previous Chief and Council and this criticism is simply not true. We have no trouble - and in fact welcome the opportunity - of opening the gaming books for Sagkeeng’s scrutiny. We will be happy to compare our first three months of gaming administration with any previous Chief and Council’s record.
We find ourselves in a no-win situation. Many times, always in fact, we dip into our own pocket money. Previous Chiefs and Councils have done the same. Some say we don’t help enough while others say we are spending too much. In fact we have lowered our discretionary spending and have allowed Gaming to build up the savings so we can re-invest in other things like an improved Gaming Building or to help with a major economic project where the whole band can be beneficiary.
I want this Chief and Council to be different and so do my council. I want to work to make Sagkeeng a strong community, a community that doesn’t have to beg the Government and INAC for funding increases, a community that is prosperous enough so that our people don’t have to rely on others to look after themselves and their families.
I remind you that INAC has imposed a 2% cap on Housing, Health, Education, and Capital since 1996. This cap has forced us to do more with less and has forced us to focus on the priorities and to be more careful on how and where we spend Sagkeeng’s money. This cap is the real enemy of spending and not Chief and Council. We do our best and we expect no less of ourselves.
I want to be a Chief who focuses on the important and bigger issues for the greater good and for a brighter future for our children. In the minds of Chief and Council issues like Claims, an improved or new hydro accord deal, Tembec etc. are priority issues with the potential for significant returns for the community. That is what we should be focussed on and that is what we have been doing and will continue to work on until the end of our term.
Our Two Year Plan
It is presented here today to get some initial feedback, input and suggestions on how the community can help us meet the goals we set out. We are convinced and are certain that all of the goals are achievable and most importantly, are good for the community. We don’t want to go into great detail today only to introduce it and let community look at it and think about it for a few days or weeks.
We will be open to setting up steering committees, working groups and Women’s, Men’s, Elder’s and Youth Groups so that the community can be part of initiating the changes necessary to move Sagkeeng into the future. But a word of caution that I cannot emphasize enough, we will not allow the working group or committee to slow things down, or to complicate matters by going in different directions then chief and council.
For example, if we want to negotiate with Hydro on Pointe du Bois on some opportunities such as an equity position, partnership like Waskwatum, Kanawapa, Keyask, and the committee wants to halt or stop the project we will not allow that. We want a healthy working relationship with the committees as a guiding and advisory relationship on best practices so that we can conduct negotiations from a position of strength. We want committed individuals who are there with the community’s best interests at heart and not there for politics or personal gain.
We believe that that an economic development corporation is vital for Sagkeeng. Year after year, Grants are given out that add up to nothing for the community. It may put money in some people’s pocket for awhile but it is nothing lasting. In order for the corporation to succeed is must be separate from Chief and Council in its day to day administration. The success of any business and First Nation community is separating politics from business. But we cannot have a Corporation that is going to do its own thing without being accountable to the people and chief and council.
The greatest challenge of any FN community is housing. There is just never enough to go around. And there never seems to be a fair allocation of the houses. Questions such as, “Who gets the few houses each year,” and “how do I qualify?” are things that a housing Authority will seek to rectify. Repairs, “how come some get it and others don’t” “why do some newer houses still get repairs?” These questions can be addressed by a housing authority.
The housing authority that we intend to establish can also address the issue of off-reserve housing and available housing opportunities. There is currently a pool of approximately $25 Million with the Province and we are trying to tap into that. But they are not going to give it to a First Nation without a plan or a structure capable of administering a significant amount of money. We need to be prepared, we need to be serious, and we need to be progressive in our thinking so that we don’t waste or miss an opportunity that is good for our people.
Sagkeeng people want to take ownership of our election system and our governance again. A good self governing community runs their own elections. We don’t need outsiders to run our affairs and to dictate our democracy. A majority of our people say our terms are too short. Our own custom election code can establish an appropriate term for Chief or Councillors. The current system under the Indian Act does not meet the needs of the people and actually gets in the way of long-term planning when every second year the community has to get ready for and vote in an election. Once we have the draft document ready to present to Sagkeeng we will seek the guidance of the community to hold a referendum so that Sagkeeng can regain control of our own election process.
Sagkeeng has laws ready to be fine tuned and some ready for ratification by community vote. We believe that we should have our own legislation or laws and enforceable policies on items such as spending discretion. We can’t be lawless if we are to provide the community with good government.
On accountability, we said we would be more accountable. To that end, we will have a monthly activity report presented quarterly at Assemblies, as well as on a Radio Show. These reports will provide all information on spending and information on simple things like who gets what etc.
For Assemblies, it is important that the community get results from them. We want the community to be involved in a good way and not to come and scream and try intimidate chief and council.
It is not a place to push for your personal issue. There is a place and time for that and if there isn‘t we will establish a process to do that. There is over 6,000 people and each one has equal rights and they should not have their needs unmet because we have to satisfy only cetain people at an assembly. This has to stop.
People stay home because they lost total confidence in our assemblies and that nothing every gets done or accomplished. They feel that it is always the same ones who go there wanting things their way while the quiet ones, the silent majority, stay home. They need to come out too because Sagkeeng is also their community. We can do that if we involve all of our community members and make our assemblies positive and above all, productive.
We have ambitious plans for the next two years and this assembly is our chance to introduce our Two Year Plan for Sagkeeng. It is important that we use the time wisely so that the community can be properly informed. It’s my hope that those who have come to only to complain or yell take the time to consider their actions and respect those who are interested in making Sagkeeng a healthy and prosperous community that will again be the envy of all other First Nations. We seek your solutions and believe Unity rather than disunity is our key to a better community.
Miigwetch,
Donavan Fontaine
Chief, Sagkeeng First Nation
Aniin
Chief Donavan Fontaine's Portfolio consist of: ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | EROSION | FINANCE | FIRE DEPARTMENT | FN FORESTRY LTD PARTNERSHIP | HEALTH HOUSING/CMHC | HYDRO ACCORD NEGOTIATIONS | OFF-RESERVE MEMBERS | RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT | TEMBEC | WABANONG NAKAYGUM OKIMAWIN (WNO)