Norman Yakeleya

I understand it’s the program. You look on the website, it is a federal program. However, this government here has tied itself to it by signing the contribution agreement to educate the public on healthy foods in our small communities. What advice has this government to date provided to the federal government to make sure the Freight Subsidy Program for food works for the people in the Northwest Territories? What I’m hearing right now is that in the Northwest Territories the freight subsidy isn’t working and we’re paying about 20 bucks for freight for five or 10 pounds of potatoes. Where’s the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I talked about the Nutrition North Program under the federal government’s responsibility and what type of a disaster our northern consumers are facing today as they used to operate the Food Mail Program. I want to ask this government, I don’t know which, maybe the Premier or the Minister who is responsible under the Food Mail Program, what types of monitoring initiatives are done to monitor the food costs in our small communities so that we are well informed as to how the new subsidies are being applied.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Would the Minister lay out a little more of a clear path, I guess, in the transition document as to the funding that could be looked at in the 17th or closing this Assembly here as to what are some of the close certainties of the financial revenues that we may seek either from the feds or from our own sources in the Territories?

So we’ve put in the books the projects that we’ve agreed as the Assembly of this government, and now what I’m hearing the Minister saying to the people is that the projects that have already been agreed to, the multi-year funding projects may be in jeopardy. In light of what the Minister is saying to the House by stating the forecast that the government now will have to deal with the capital infrastructure expenditures, is that correct?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This is our final sitting in the House before the 16th Legislative Assembly will be closed. Some may say, where did the time go, while others may say, finally our time is up.

From the Sahtu’s perspective, we have, and will continue to have, universal issues that need to be resolved with all Northerners. Matters such as the lack of housing units, assessments of people’s health care, protection of our elders, and implementation of specific clauses in our land claim agreements and asserting our Aboriginal rights to the land and how we as Northerners work and live together....

Is the Minister meeting with his federal counterpart or other Finance Ministers in Canada to look at this situation here in the North, in light of what we may be faced with? Can the Minister provide us with a brief update as to what type of actions or strategies this government is doing to see that some of these capital projects start and finish on time and on budget?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I talked about the infrastructure projects in the Sahtu and the projects that are underway. There is some commitment to some of them happening in the Sahtu and also to other communities in the Northwest Territories. I want to ask the Minister, in light of his ministerial statement on the fiscal and economic updates in the Northwest Territories and the challenges that are going to be facing the 17th Assembly, I want to ask the Minister in retrospect of the projects that are already committed in the Northwest Territories for this year and next year and the year after...

Mr. Speaker, the residential school has been a very tough issue for a lot of communities. The residential school has also contributed to a lot of violence, a lot of addictions and a lot of different forms of abuses in our communities. As a matter of fact, Mr. Speaker, in 1998, when I did some of my training, a consultant from Santa Cruz, California, said to me that the residential school was a real festering ground for these kinds of things to happen in the communities. I didn’t understand what he said, not until today.

Mr. Speaker, we know personally that some of these survivors are in jails...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to acknowledge the former MP of Western Arctic Mrs. Ethel Blondin-Andrew. She was recently recognized as a contributor to the building of our education system in the North. Mrs. Blondin-Andrew was given the honour of her name to stand beside others who were also named to the Hall of Fame in Education.

Mrs. Blondin-Andrew was the first Aboriginal MP to sit in the House of Parliament in Ottawa. Today Mrs. Blondin-Andrew continues to support our education system by representing the Sahtu on the Aurora College Board of Governors and representing the seven land...

This apology gave me hope that maybe, just maybe, we can begin a new chapter in the history of our country.

From living in the bush we know life can be different, a far cry from now what we experience in our communities.

On May 26th I encourage people across Canada and the Northwest Territories to pray and to think about the healing process and the work towards reconciliation that we all need to do.

It is an honour to stand here and say thank you for being the first and only government in our land to support survivors by giving them this date to help them. Imagine what it would be like if we all...