Norman Yakeleya

I believe the Minister’s willingness. When I sat with him in Colville Lake, people and good old people, he wanted to do something different and do something that would make sense to the Aboriginals who have hurt our communities and their people. I want to ask the Minister if there’s a possibility of possibly having some time to invite the Social Justice Committee members to go to Kozo Lake and look at that project, talk to the contractor and possibly talk to some of the people who are doing time there right now and see the benefits of on-the-land treatment programs for people in the North.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member’s statement I talked about the need for people to go on the land who have done some pretty serious damages. The people and elders in our communities talk about that. I want to ask the Minister what the status is of the two communities who have made this request; Colville Lake for integrating people back into the communities and, of course, the community of Fort Good Hope, who wanted on-the-land treatment programs for people who are sent to our correctional institutes here.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The people in the Sahtu have always talked about going out on the land. Unfortunately, some of our people end up in correctional institutions. I’ve listened to Colville Lake people, people in Fort Good Hope and Tulita, Deline and Norman Wells. The older people talk about the power of going out on the land and getting healed and being taught.

Unfortunately, this government has only two, I think, on-the-land treatment programs or healing programs or correctional camps that are operating, if not maybe one. People in the Sahtu are saying that and the elders are saying that...

I’m looking to this department under the leadership of the Minister to provide some direction and directive to the Sahtu educational board, the Aurora College people and the Sahtu training committee to come together with a strategy. The goodness of this government here has agreed to put a new wellness centre and a long-term care facility. That’s a $41 million infrastructure that’s going into the Sahtu. I certainly appreciate it and the people in the Sahtu appreciate it. This year alone, the oil companies have already spent about $100 million or more for the oil exploration, and it’s looking...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I just want to say that it costs $220 to fill up a 150 type pickup in Norman Wells. My question is if this motion is going to investigate and look at it and that’s it, I just want to know why. I will be supporting this motion.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s been estimated that 85 percent of crimes in the Northwest Territories are alcohol and/or drug related, and 90 percent of offenders in the Northwest Territories correctional facilities have addiction issues. A high percentage of these offenders and people in the correctional institutes are Aboriginal people.

What Aboriginal context, what type of Aboriginal programs do you have that are operating now in the correctional institutes that we can also possibly offer on-the-land programs?

In the latest numbers that I have received from the department, it costs the Government of the Northwest Territories about $107,000 a year per inmate to keep them at one of our correctional centres here. I want to ask the Minister what it costs to have an on-the-land program. Do they have one yet in the Territories? What does it cost for having people on the land at that type of program?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I will break that record by recognizing Mr. Jim Antoine, a good friend of mine, also to Mr. Whitford and all his accomplishments. I’d also like to recognize the NWT Seniors’ Society group that my mother dearly loved to work with and she certainly spoke highly of them. I also, in closing, would like to recognize one of our staff members who is with one of the children up there.

Mr. Chair, we’re not talking to each other in the Sahtu region. The Minister has indicated that there is strong regional training, but we are still working in isolation. That’s why I’m asking for this.

I’ve gone back into the Sahtu. We are taking Aurora College programs, but the entry level is nothing, otherwise these students would have gone to Aurora College. There are a lot of students in Fort Smith. There are students here in business management and other programs in Yellowknife. Some of them may have gone to Inuvik. We need to bump up our level of training in the Sahtu. We are still...

Thank you, Mr. Chair. I want to ask the Minister about the infrastructure requirements or needs in our smaller communities. For example, our schools or Aurora College. Is there infrastructure information that we could look at in terms of a 10, 20 year, sort of, down the road? For example, my colleague from Nahendeh talked about the schools in his riding. They’re no different than the schools that we have in Colville Lake and we still expect our children to obtain a level of educational standards that is pretty difficult to beat at times. I appreciate the work that you’ve done in the last...