Norman Yakeleya

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Justice on the lack of RCMP officers in the 10 communities. There is a list I have of all the small communities in the Northwest Territories. I want to ask the Minister, in his discussions with the federal Minister on other issues, did this issue come up and how can we rectify or look at some of our small communities, such as Colville Lake, to see if there’s some type of law enforcement that can be put into Colville Lake to ensure the safety of the people is foremost and that we take this issue very seriously.

I look forward to going into the communities that have somewhat struggled with these services and see how these services are going to be improved to the people in the communities. I look forward to that and will get back to the Minister once I visit the communities.

I want to ask the Minister on just what the deputy minister has said. I asked how many dollars are spent with the southern contractor in this activity.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again I rise to talk about the lack of RCMP detachments in our communities in the Northwest Territories. Presently there are 10 communities without RCMP members. The RCMP serves these 10 communities from a larger detachment. For example, in Tsiigehtchic the RCMP from Fort McPherson serve that community; in Gameti the Behchoko Detachment serves that community; Colville Lake is served by the RCMP Fort Good Hope Detachment. It has been a long-standing issue with the communities that do not have RCMP members in that community. It at times can be very frustrating. It can be...

It would have made a difference this year if they had sewage tanks going into the Colville Lake School. I am telling you right now, if the Minister and staff went to Colville Lake, they have the sewer truck there. It is pumping out sewer in the bed and breakfast and pumping out of the band office and it is being used. For the Minister’s statement that it wouldn’t matter, I think that is a real kind of attitude to say to our community in Colville Lake it wouldn’t matter. It would have mattered, because the sewer truck now is being used in Colville Lake. They have a garage and they are using it...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I want to ask the Minister under the department if he could provide to me a briefing. It could be in a document, or I know I heard Mr. Guy talk about it earlier, on the situation in Colville Lake with their honey bucket matter there at the school and also at the health centre. I know the kids, 53 of them have to wait another year to use a facility that has running water in there. I’m really disappointed that it will take another year for this department to put in a proper facility in the school, and also they can look at that at the health centre too.

There is a sewer...

I just about choked in here. I didn’t know what to say. The Minister said yes right away.

I want to ask the Minister how soon he can work with us to get a research institution into Fort Good Hope to start the process of elimination of the types of cancer that are causing so much grief in the community of Radili Ko?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The people in Fort Good Hope have asked me why they have to yell so loud for help. Recognizing there are a lot of cancer deaths in the Northwest Territories, my people in Fort Good Hope in the last month have three more who have been diagnosed with cancer. That’s three more families that are affected right now. They are asking for help. Why do they have to yell so loud to this government to say bring somebody in? Let them work with the families. Let them work with the young ones. Let them understand what death and dying is all about and how hard it’s going to be for...

There’s an author that’s renowned for her work with death and cancer, Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, and she talks about dealing with grief, and the general normal grief process takes about two years for the person to go through the whole grief cycle. Of course, with our Aboriginal people we have our own cultural grief ceremonies.

I wanted to ask the Minister, because there are so many deaths in Fort Good Hope, is there any way that his department can find a dedicated person to come to Fort Good Hope, stay in Fort Good Hope, and deal with the hundreds of people that are affected by one cancer death or...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would also like to add my comments to Mr. Bromley’s to recognize Patrick. Whenever we get to Ulukhaktok, he has always been there. Welcome to the kids from Ulukhaktok. You have a very beautiful community.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to make a few comments to the infrastructure for the Department of Education. I wanted to ask the department, when they are doing their capital planning or their needs assessment, if the community of Colville Lake is in line anywhere in the needs assessment for a new learning centre.

They are operating out of an older unit. They have some pretty good success by having a person in there working with the community and the older people. I think that it’s about time that this community be looked at as a community where a learning centre can be brought in and...