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Sentinel
Northern
www.northernsentinel.com
Volume 58 No. 32
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
$
1.30 INCLUDES TAX
60th anniversary activities continue for the District of Kitimat, the latest event being an outdoor moving night. While July 26 actually had the audience in the Tamitik Arena for Hotel Transylvania, the crowd on July 27 got to enjoy Here Comes the Boom on the grass outside the Riverlodge.
Ross returns as Haisla chief councillor He says portfolio system as stands needs major overhaul
By the end of day July 28, the new Haisla Nation Council was known following their regular election. In all, 379 votes were cast for the position of councillors, of which 10 seats were up for grabs. The position of chief councillor went to Ellis Ross by acclamation as he had no opponents. He first earned the position in the 2011 election, and was a councillor since 2003. Taking a seat with him at the council table will be Henry Amos, Taylor Cross, Brenda Duncan, Godfrey Grant, Margaret Grant, Willard Grant, Lucille Harms, Joanne Ross, Russell Ross and Crystal Smith. A recount was conducted for Willard Grant and Alexander Grant Sr., due to the extremely close margin of Willard’s win, as set out in the Haisla’s election code. Willard snuck the win by a margin of three votes over Alexander. The conclusion of this election means some interesting changes and initiatives, both from the new chief councillor and from the election process itself.
with matters outside of health From Ellis Ross’ perspecor fisheries, for example. tive, he aims to change up He told the Sentinel that how portfolios are handled, as an example with the Health the goal being to free up counportfolio, they receive a cercil’s time from matters that tain amount of money from don’t much impact their own the federal government to imbusiness. plement health services, and “In light of all the projwith that they hire a manager, ects we’re part of now...I think who works under the chief opwe’ve got enough momentum erations officer, and the health there, but I strongly believe centre is managed under that that it’s our structure that acsystem. tually holds us back now,” exIt doesn’t make sense to plained Ross. “We’re so used put members of the council to dealing with Indian Act into that mix, he said, which is programming and we’re so Ellis Ross what happens now. used to being dictated by what “If you don’t agree with it they’ll [Otfunding agreements with Ottawa tell us to do and tell us what not to do. I think we’ve tawa] just cut your funding. So why put got to break out of that and I think we’ve councillors down there to do a job that the got to leave our administration to deal with chief operating officer is already doing, the Indian Act programming and our council manager is already doing, the staff members are already doing? And at the end of deals with all of these other issues.” In a letter written to the Haisla Nation the day you can’t improve on it really,” said following his acclamation, he talked of the Ross. “I want to leave staff to do the jobs current portfolio system, which he wrote is they’ve been hired to do.” He wants new portfolios created for not set up to let the council look or deal
councillors to cover issues such as language, land management and governmentto-government portfolio, as well as a communication portfolio to get information transmitted effectively from and to the Haisla membership. In his letter he also noted a problem with council has been not enough separation between the administration and the elected council. “It’s a stereotype to say ‘I’m going to get a job now and an opportunity because my brother’s on council’,” said Ross, but added, “I’m not sure that stereotype isn’t too far off from the mark. I’ve seen where councillors advocate for family members or themselves...I just want to put in a system that no matter who’s in council, you’re always achieving something for your membership.” And empowering the councillors to achieve more is another facet to his new platform. He said he knows first hand from his time as a Haisla councillor that councillors aren’t given their due respect in the system. Continued on page 3
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The Haisla Homecoming celebrated ... page 6