By Any Measure...
Prime Minister Stephen Harper is adamant, there must be accountability - and not the least bit entertained by the inability of the manager of Attawapiskat, Chief Theresa Spence's "life companion", to explain the band's use of the millions that have been allocated to it over the years. For there appears little to show for the millions that have been handed out to the band council of this remote reserve, in support of its thousand-and-a-half residents.
An emergency has been declared; families living in unsafe, unhygienic conditions, in inadequately heated temporary quarters, with no running water and little in the way of hygienic modern amenities. Houses built 40 years earlier have been declared unsafe, mouldy and unlivable. Why was there no regular upkeep to ensure that these places would remain useful to their residents?
Chief Theresa Spence has communicated with Aboriginal Affairs Minister John Duncan to inform him that the idea floated to temporarily relocate some of the neediest residents will not fly. They plan to remain in their substandard houses. And as soon as the winter 'roads' freeze over sufficiently to allow traffic to come in, 15 modular homes will be trucked to the reserve.
Although Chief Spence indicates that 22 such temporary homes would better serve the numbers requiring them. She remains resolved in disfavour of allowing the federally appointed third-party manager to come into the reserve, and does not wish to co-operate with him. It is an indignity, a slap in the face of the band council, as though the government does not trust them to allocate funding properly.
This is Attawapiskat, a remote northern Ontario reserve with a $31.2-million annual operating budget to service the needs of its 1,549 people. This is not Atikokan, a town near Thunder Bay, with 3,293 people, with their annual operating expenditures of $8.4-million. Quite the disparity that, isn't it? Attawapiskat, a First Nations reserve; Atikokan, an all-white town.
Atikokan spends less than $3-million on salaries and benefits, representing roughly $904 per resident. Attawapiskat, on the other hand, spends $11.2-million for salaries, wages and employee benefits; $7,240 per-reserve resident. The Atikokan mayor's salary for 2009 was $7,713, with an additional $4,268 accounting for travel; $12,000 in total. The entire total for salaries and expenses for Atikokan's mayor and 7 councillors came to $46,691.
Chief Theresa Spence took in a salary (2010) of $51,803, to administer affairs for the 1,549 residents of Attawapiskat. Total salaries for Attawapiskat's chief, deputy chief and 18 councillors came to $386,129. Another $28,535 for expenses. The following year, that cost leap-frogged to $625,552, representing a 48% increase. While the band members languished in unsafe housing.
Something, clearly, is not quite right. First Nations deserve better. Their children deserve a better life, a brighter future. There is failure on the part of the government to conceive of and construct a better mechanism whereby reserves can receive the funding they require and be accountable for it. Better yet, to somehow persuade First Nations that they can do better for themselves.
The DeBeers mine employs a handful of Attawapiskat residents. Relocated closer to a more densely populated area where goods and transportation are not as costly, and where employment more available, First Nations people could live lives that are useful to themselves, with the pride that comes with being independent and self-sufficient, and private property ownership instilling responsibility.
An emergency has been declared; families living in unsafe, unhygienic conditions, in inadequately heated temporary quarters, with no running water and little in the way of hygienic modern amenities. Houses built 40 years earlier have been declared unsafe, mouldy and unlivable. Why was there no regular upkeep to ensure that these places would remain useful to their residents?
Chief Theresa Spence has communicated with Aboriginal Affairs Minister John Duncan to inform him that the idea floated to temporarily relocate some of the neediest residents will not fly. They plan to remain in their substandard houses. And as soon as the winter 'roads' freeze over sufficiently to allow traffic to come in, 15 modular homes will be trucked to the reserve.
Although Chief Spence indicates that 22 such temporary homes would better serve the numbers requiring them. She remains resolved in disfavour of allowing the federally appointed third-party manager to come into the reserve, and does not wish to co-operate with him. It is an indignity, a slap in the face of the band council, as though the government does not trust them to allocate funding properly.
This is Attawapiskat, a remote northern Ontario reserve with a $31.2-million annual operating budget to service the needs of its 1,549 people. This is not Atikokan, a town near Thunder Bay, with 3,293 people, with their annual operating expenditures of $8.4-million. Quite the disparity that, isn't it? Attawapiskat, a First Nations reserve; Atikokan, an all-white town.
Atikokan spends less than $3-million on salaries and benefits, representing roughly $904 per resident. Attawapiskat, on the other hand, spends $11.2-million for salaries, wages and employee benefits; $7,240 per-reserve resident. The Atikokan mayor's salary for 2009 was $7,713, with an additional $4,268 accounting for travel; $12,000 in total. The entire total for salaries and expenses for Atikokan's mayor and 7 councillors came to $46,691.
Chief Theresa Spence took in a salary (2010) of $51,803, to administer affairs for the 1,549 residents of Attawapiskat. Total salaries for Attawapiskat's chief, deputy chief and 18 councillors came to $386,129. Another $28,535 for expenses. The following year, that cost leap-frogged to $625,552, representing a 48% increase. While the band members languished in unsafe housing.
Something, clearly, is not quite right. First Nations deserve better. Their children deserve a better life, a brighter future. There is failure on the part of the government to conceive of and construct a better mechanism whereby reserves can receive the funding they require and be accountable for it. Better yet, to somehow persuade First Nations that they can do better for themselves.
The DeBeers mine employs a handful of Attawapiskat residents. Relocated closer to a more densely populated area where goods and transportation are not as costly, and where employment more available, First Nations people could live lives that are useful to themselves, with the pride that comes with being independent and self-sufficient, and private property ownership instilling responsibility.
Labels: Aboriginal populations, Canada, Economy, Education, Environment
posted by Pieface | 7:03 PM
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