Norman Yakeleya

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I also will be supporting this motion and think that, Mr. Speaker, this is very healthy for this government to re-evaluate the WCB in terms of the issues that the Auditor General may find, especially for the small communities that are primarily Slavey speaking -- the aboriginal language is the first language in terms of them getting some services -- and see what they can do in terms of strengthening the governance of WCB or the way it manages claims and how it is perceived in the public.

WCB doesn’t have to be seen as a place to fear, but somewhere that they will take...

If I had a billion dollars, I wouldn’t forget the arts and crafts. Artists need raw materials and supplies and they need them fast because in Yellowknife tourism is getting to critical mass.

If I had a billion dollars, I’d support the trappers and their traditional lifestyle by buying everyone a fur coat, and that really isn’t cruel. I’m not just thinking about the Sahtu, I’d buy for all the MLAs and their communities.

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Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to ask the Minister of MACA to tell me whether or not any of the new money like the municipal rural infrastructure fund or the gas tax money from the federal government can be used to speed up the process by which communities in the Sahtu are getting their roads chipsealed. Or if this money cannot be used directly for chipsealing, maybe it will free up some other money that can be used to advance the chipsealing schedule for the Sahtu. Thank you.

Then I’ll clean up the contaminated mountain in Tulita while I’m at it too, because that would be cool.

Mr. Speaker, if I had a billion dollars, I’d build a Mackenzie Valley office in the Sahtu. Cabinet could help with Inuvik too.

But if I had a billion dollars, I’d fund the treatment centres so we can all get well and if we could learn to build it ourselves, wouldn’t that be swell.

Mr. Speaker, if I had a billion dollars, I’d get energy from the Bear, no more diesel generators, hydro is the way to go.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I previously spoke about the concerns for the health of my constituents and the adverse effects that dust in our communities has on the elders and other people. Can the Minister of MACA confirm that the chipsealing program in the Sahtu will continue and that it’s on track and on time? I’m concerned, Mr. Speaker, because I heard that MACA may discontinue this program after they have chipsealed Fort Good Hope. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Minister. Mr. Speaker, will the Minister look into the possibilities of using GNWT’s additional resources? He made a commitment earlier to look at that to increase the capacity of the UCEP to make it more accessible to the NWT residents, especially through the student financial services in regard to the Metis people. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, last week, I raised the issue of access to federal funding for the University and College Entry Program, known as the UCEP program. The Minister of Education, Culture and Employment made a commitment to speak with the federal government about the discriminatory nature of the program towards individuals of Metis heritage. I have follow-up questions for the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment. Given that there are more people, both status and non-status, to access the UCEP program than there is space and given that it may take some time before the...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I’ve seen some e-mails from members of the community of Fort Good Hope and they’re indicating that the water flow is above the bridge or close to the bridge and they’re afraid that because of the next couple of days the weather is going to be warming up and they’re afraid there might be an overflow and the bridge will be unusable. Is there any indication from the Minister in terms of an emergency response plan in terms of the communities having access to the airport outside access to the winter road that goes out of town? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, there’s a saying that London Bridge is falling down, London Bridge is falling down, but in the Sahtu, our Jackfish Creek Bridge is falling down. So I want to ask the Minister of Transportation, last spring in 2004 the Jackfish Creek Bridge was damaged and was unsafe to use. That closed the airport down for several days and caused an emergency in Fort Good Hope. Almost one year and the bridge still has not been worked on. I want to ask the Minister if he could advise me and the people in the Sahtu, especially those in Fort Good Hope, when this bridge is...

Just for clarification, when you say for participation for youths in schools, is this also for Aurora College and other institutions or just specifically for schools?