Norman Yakeleya

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The Department of Transportation has done a lot of work in the Territories. I want to speak on the initiatives that were done in my region and I want to say that the airport infrastructure that happened in my region were very beneficial to my constituents, to the airline companies. We were happy that the department and the Fort Good Hope community came to a satisfactory solution that helped them extend the runway a little longer. People in Fort Good Hope were very pleased that this has taken place, because of their joint ventures with NorthWright in terms of the...

Mr. Chair, the alternative energy initiatives that are happening around the North there, I wanted to ask the Minister in looking at the biomass energy, I know there are some reports that have been out there on the Alternative Energy Initiative and the communities that would benefit greatly. I wanted to ask the Minister if they’ve come to a conclusion in terms of establishing something in the Sahtu to help them with the high cost of living, with opportunities and to reduce the greenhouse and all the other good stuff that goes on with the biomass, maybe a manufacturing plant. I also understand...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I often speak in support of culture and Aboriginal programs and the needs for these programs to preserve and to hold onto our traditions, especially in our educational institutions. My Member’s statement today will focus on the importance of these same programs that contribute to the achievement of our children and our youth. We need to continue to walk in our ancestors’ footpath of success, which is adept to whatever is in front of us.

Last year, in the Auditor General’s report, it was clear from the Alberta Achievement Tests in the last three years that NWT students’...

Sometime in the first week in March, I would hope that I would follow up with the community of Tulita to see if this issue has been resolved and that people in Tulita can go to a depot and get a refund. I certainly hope that there are some alternatives in place. The Northern Store is charging fees that we, in the community of Tulita, are paying extra fees and there doesn’t seem to be any support mechanisms to help them out with these extra fees. So I would leave it in the good hands of the Minister that he has stated that in a couple of weeks, hopefully, these options can be sorted out and the...

Page 13-14, Mr. Chair?

That was a good meal, Mr. Chair. I want to just ask three questions of the Minister. I’m very pleased the Minister said the Aboriginal communities are going to be involved with some of the design and the monitoring with the federal government and our government. I wanted to ask the Minister if an emphasis on traditional knowledge would be included with the design of some of the monitoring. There’s some information that people have on the Mackenzie that’s very valuable, especially with some of the elders that we have along the Mackenzie River to look at this aspect of the monitoring. That will...

I also look forward to the Minister working with the federal minister or the federal government with the fish up in Fort Good Hope. I know there was some concern in Fort Good Hope as to the quality of their fish. I heard also in Tulita from a gentleman who lives in Fort Resolution, that he talked about the fish in the Great Slave Lake and some of the fish that they were catching weren’t quite healthy. The first time that this gentleman, and he’s an older gentleman and he could be considered an elder, but the quality of the fish that they caught, they didn’t look quite right.

I want to know if...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to ask the Minister of Transportation some questions on the Mackenzie Valley Highway. I understand that the Minister met with some western Transportation Ministers and I wonder if they had any discussion on the National Transportation Policy on this dream of many people in the valley in terms of having some more concrete realities, I guess I could say, in terms of putting the steel to the ground to open up the Mackenzie Valley Highway. I know there were some project description reports done and I think we’re close to going to the second level.

Mr. Speaker, certainly there are some concerns raised by the people along the Mackenzie, in terms of the fish that they are seeing now in their nets. I want to ask if the Minister would raise, again, this issue to the Minister if he could come down during the summer, come down the Mackenzie River, look at the fish, live on the Mackenzie River and see how serious this issue is, or just take him to court for polluting our water? I mean, that’s how serious it is. So I want to ask the Minister that.

Mr. Speaker, if this new founding has come to light through the federal government, I’m not too sure when the 90 days starts or when it’s running out. What can we do more to give a push to the federal government to make sure these monitoring stations are in place and that they’re monitoring the effects of the Alberta tar sands, amongst other things, that are coming down into the Great Slave Lake or the Mackenzie River? What can we do to push the federal government to get on this right away?