Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to talk about a great program that’s been initiated by a few departments through the Healthy Choices Framework a couple of years ago that did result from some tragic incidents throughout the Northwest Territories and that we still see today, and that is dealing with drugs in our communities.
The Not Us! Campaign is a very successful campaign initiated through the Department of Justice. It has partners of the RCMP, Health and Social Services, Education, Culture and Employment, MACA and the Executive. It is a program that fights the drugs in our communities. It gives an opportunity for people at the community level to take a stand and say no, we don’t want these drugs in our communities and we want the drug dealers out.
In Inuvik I’ve been part of that committee for the last two years and what that entails is you get a $10,000 grant for your first year to run programs. Having a very concerned group of individuals in Inuvik, as well as in the communities of Hay River and Yellowknife, and I think most recently Fort McPherson, it is taking a really strong stand and we are seeing some really positive outcomes of this. There are a lot more drug busts in the communities and incarcerations of some of the drug dealers that are doing harm to our people in the communities as well.
Today I just want to thank all those throughout the Northwest Territories who have taken that stand against drugs, who have taken that stand to put these initiatives in their communities and for the great work that this government is doing in supporting all the departments and this program. I do hope to see more funding going to prevention programs like this so that we don’t have to band-aid the situation in years to come.
Thank you, Mr. Moses. The honourable Member for Weledeh, Mr. Bromley.
