Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I applaud all the Members here talking about drugs and alcohol, addictions and facilities. This summer we definitely were frustrated with the process that was in place from the closure of the only drug and alcohol facility in the Northwest Territories. This affected three MLAs, the Member for Deh Cho and the two main Members from Hay River.
There were six positions at K’atlodeeche and eight from Hay River. Those people were in the community. Those were people that were given very short notice that their jobs were done. There are 14 families that have been affected by this closure, and that’s not answering any of the addictions issues that we have in the Northwest Territories, as my colleagues just mentioned.
I have no problem and I don’t disagree that in some instances on-the-land programs work. Youth definitely need support. The difficulty is how this information was given to us. We sit here as MLAs on a steady basis going to meeting after meeting, discussing issues a year in advance of what we’re going to do, and we get notice a week before the actual closure of the facility was going to happen.
The three MLAs that were affected have been asked on a daily basis for the last three or four months since the closure, where were you guys in supporting this. Did you guys support this? Why didn’t you guys say something to the community? Because we got sideswiped. The department, the Minister sideswiped us. You know, shame on the government for doing this to us. My colleagues here in Social Programs have spent hours discussing this and they were told last minute as well.
I understand that the closure is complete, but this government has to come up with a solution. What is going to happen to that facility? Is that facility going to be mothballed and another facility that’s closed throughout the Territories is never used when we’re sending people from the Northwest Territories to the South again? Don’t we have a solution that we can do in house, in the Northwest Territories? We promote this as business, we promote this on a steady basis that we want to do things in the North. Why didn’t the department, when they decided to close this facility, have a solution for the use of that facility?
The problem is larger than that. What is happening with other addictions like cocaine, solvents and prescription drugs? The department has no solutions, yet they’re willing to close the facility as a kneejerk reaction.
It’s a shame for the government to do this and I do not appreciate it. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Bouchard. Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Blake.
