Norman Yakeleya

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I wish to seek unanimous consent to deal with Motion 2-15(6), which I gave notice of yesterday.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My written question is to the Minister of Education, Culture and Employment.

In 2003, the Aurora Research Institute convened a workshop on social and cultural issues in the Northwest Territories. Participants included representatives from all the regions in the Northwest Territories, including both governments and community groups. Some southern Canadian-based researchers who had experience in the social and cultural research in the NWT were invited, as were members of the three Canadian research funding agencies. The research addressed the following questions: How does...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, sometime in April, the Sahtu will have a career fair that is happening. I believe some of the diamond mines will be there. Mr. Speaker, I have asked the Minister in terms of between now and 2014 or 2011, can the Minister work with the communities up in the Deh Cho and the Sahtu, Gwich’in and Beaufort-Delta in terms of providing opportunities for these people, the people in the Northwest Territories, to work in Ekati, BHP and Diavik and stop the influx of workers coming from the South to work in those mines? I see planeloads of people coming in and...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I certainly would support the Minister in terms of the initiative that his department is doing. Mr. Speaker, people in the Sahtu, the Gwich’in, the Beaufort-Delta and other parts of the North here are seasonal workers. They are limited in terms of what they can do. They have huge payloads in terms of the work they have to do. What is the Minister doing in terms of how do we get these people, these companies here, involved in the type of work that is happening in the diamond mines? Where are the numbers that show that we are going to get these people...

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again, would the Minister commit to looking at proposing to have a position at the Aurora College institute that promotes and supports community-based social and cultural research? We need a position; we need a staff person at the research centre of excellence in the Northwest Territories, because the Northwest Territories has a lot to offer to the world. We have to get that message to the scientists. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I look forward to this government and this Minister in terms of monitoring how these scientists involve and report back to the communities. I want to ask the Minister in terms of how does the community get its needs met in terms of being involved in the research project? I mean you’re going to meet the needs of the scientists and meet the needs of the institutions. How does it meet the needs of the community in terms of implementing their traditional knowledge into a science that is internationally recognized, not just from the scientist but also from the traditional...

Thank you, Madam Chair. I move that this committee recommends that the government provide a comprehensive response to this report within 120 days. Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in this situation here, because we are at the 11th hour of this agreement, it’s the only treatment centre in the Northwest Territories that shut down for a lot of issues that came from alcohol, and our communities are suffering terribly. I wonder if the Minister or GNWT would consider bringing the facilities or the parties, workers, into the public service so we have some security for our people. You have to think about the people in the community and the clients. Would the Minister consider bringing these workers into the public service? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my Member’s statement also talked about Nats’ejee K’eh and the issue over there. I would like to ask the Minister of Health and Social Services, at what point did the GNWT become aware that the parties where they were without an agreement? Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I was home for the weekend and I was talking to some of the people in my community. I ran into a young little girl in Northern Store and I waved to her so she’ll know it’s me waving to her. Said she sees me on TV and all the other Members and she was quite happy. When I was home and had a constituent meeting with some of the people from Deline and people from Tulita and they were talking about the Nats’ejee K’eh healing, alcohol and drug treatment centre and what was going on with the centre being closed and what was happening. People didn’t quite...