Norman Yakeleya

The diabetes issue is dangerous. It’s coming. We can feel it in the Sahtu. Eight years ago we had very few people with diabetes. Now we have higher numbers each year. It’s affecting our children in the schools. I know the Education department is doing some work. I want to ask the Minister in terms of the education awareness what his department is doing with diabetes in the Sahtu and other communities in the Northwest Territories. People are also realizing this issue of diabetes is going to be a dangerous one if we don’t take care of it.

The Minister is correct on this issue. I’m just glad the Minister is well aware of the issue. He knows it’s out there, he knows it’s going to cost some money to get this issue here. However, I’d like to ask the Minister that when you look at this, you are serving Aboriginal people. We have rights, we have everything in there that needs to be honoured and be respected, and if our people can’t have that type of service by this government, then somewhere we’re failing to uphold those rights and to strengthen and protect those rights. So we are actually not living up to our obligations as a...

Thank you, Madam Speaker. I want to ask the Minister of Health and Social Services, in the Sahtu there seems to be an increase of diabetes, of people who have this sickness. I want to ask the Minister if his department knows of this and do they have some kind of action plan to look at the increase of diabetes in people of the Sahtu.

Thank you, Madam Chair. I may not be on the right area, but I wanted to ask the Minister is there any work being done with the legal interpreters, translators that sometimes need to be used in the court services.

That’s my point. When I go back to the Sahtu, that’s what the elders are saying. They’re saying no one told us. No one said anything and that is certainly showing a lack of respect for the elders and for the seniors. We have asked the Minister to look at incentive programs for young people to go back to work. That was great, but we didn’t ask for him to look and charge the seniors rent. So that’s what the elders are saying. They talk to us and that’s what the territorial Seniors’ Society is saying, give us full consultation on this, slow down, let’s look at this together, but it’s something...

Thank you, Ms. Schofield. I’ve heard his own people come and talk to me and say that’s quite difficult, that the process is long or bureaucratic just to help out. I don’t know. I’m not going to be the one to make a judgment on this here. I’m glad it’s here and I look forward to maybe if the Minister could get me some information on this program and then I could bring it back to my region.

Thank you, Madam Speaker. My questions are for the Minister of the Housing Corporation. The NWT Bureau of Stats estimates that there are 187 seniors aged 60 and over in the Sahtu region. This group makes up 8.9 percent of the region’s estimated population of 2,105. By comparison, seniors aged 60 and up represent 9.9 percent of the population of the Northwest Territories.

According to the Housing Corporation, there are 74 public housing units occupied by seniors in the Sahtu. Of these, 50 units are occupied by seniors only. I want to ask the Minister, have these 50 units that are occupied by...

Thank you, Madam Chair. The Minister made some good comments in his opening presentation. I wanted to highlight a few that would seek more clarification as we go through the details.

The Minister talked about, in the second paragraph on page one of four, the programs and supporting the Assembly’s vision of a strong, independent people who are safe and secure in both communities and their homes. I wanted to raise the point here again, as I’ve been doing for the last nine years, similar to my colleague from the Mackenzie Delta, on RCMP in the communities. The Minister has heard the people of...

I say this in all earnestness, some of the units that Housing operates, their yards are not looking very good unless the Housing staff says to the tenants clean up your yard. It looks pretty terrible. You say that’s a Housing house. I guess maybe that’s a bad example I use. Some of them need to paint their house or steps or do something. Housing staff always say they’re too busy, they don’t have time or whatever. I’m saying is there any way that the tenants could help out. I’m exploring all avenues, just keep digging and digging until we have something that works. Right now I’m just saying...

Can the Minister provide us with small communities for shelters or homeless funding? I know the Minister talked about that in his opening comments. I appreciate the small community homeless funding that’s coming forward. It’s much needed in our communities in the Sahtu. I know some of these communities have this type of support. There are 27 communities that will receive this type of funding in the amount of 300 and some-odd thousand dollars. I wonder if the Minister can provide a written document to me and I’ll ask how these communities are eligible, first-come, first-served. What is the...