Perhaps the community needs to take chief and council to court
To the Expositor:
Well, it has been over two months since the elections took place on Sheguiandah First Nation and nothing has changed. The chief, Andrew Aguonie, promised to keep things the same and it’s the one promise he kept. The dysfunctional status quo remains in effect and there is no hope on the horizon for positive change. Secrecy rules the day with the band councillors and community being kept in the dark about the band’s finances.
The chief refuses to divulge what funds are in the bank accounts, what program dollars are available and the amounts. Further, the chief-elect refuses to have an audit presentation to the community; refuses to disclose where funds are coming from for certain employees and recent expenditures. The band members have no idea what the wind farm and Casino Rama dollars have been spent on.
This is the kind of leadership or lack of leadership that one gets when one is elected in someone’s Iivingroom. It’s sad that these people do not know what they are doing to their own reserve, or maybe they do and they do not care. Our reserve is dying a slow death and has ceased being a community. We lost another family two weeks ago to the city. While other reserves are seeing an increase in their on-reserve population, Sheguiandah’s is declining. Because of the lack of opportunities, fairness and the hopelessness, the members that have left have no intentions of returning. I don’t blame these people for leaving; there is nothing here.
Hopefully, with a new government in Ottawa, we can see positive change. The first change that needs to be implemented is overhauling or abolishing the Indian Act. Right now, the Indian Act allows for corruption to fester and grow and throwing money at the problem isn’t going to help unless there is accountability and transparency. What’s needed is a Band Member’s Bill of Rights that allows for total transparency and accountability. The second major change that is needed is on how chiefs and councils are elected. All across Canada, on-reserve factions have discovered that by coming together and voting for each other, they can control the entire council. The simple solution would be to only allow every eligible band member one vote for chief and one vote for councillor. This would put an end to the stacking of band councils and would thus address the corruption associated with this practice.
To effect change, the last recourse would be taking the chief and council to court on behalf of the band membership. The chief and council have a fiduciary responsibility to act in the best interests of their members and to spend funds in the best possible manner for the benefit of their members. Councils should be liable for mismanaging and misappropriating funds that were meant for the entire reserve. There are pending cases and maybe this avenue is the direction my community needs to take. Time will tell. The ball is in the council’s court and it will be up to them in what direction they want to head.
Yours truly,
Orville Aguonie
Sheguiandah First Nation
