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The voice of the South Cariboo since 1960 How to reach us: Ph: 250-395-2219 Fax: 250-395-3939 www.100milefreepress.net mail@100milefreepress.net
DECEMBER 18, 2014
New AFN Chief ‘has a lot of work to do’
Two Sections, 36 pages
100milefreepress.net
FIRST RESPONDERS RESCUE TRAPPED DRIVER
Gaven Crites Free Press
The Assembly of First Nations’ (AFN) new chief has a lot of work ahead of him, mending and improving government and aboriginal relationships, according to Canim Lake Band Chief Mike Archie. Perry Bellegarde, the former Chief of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations, won handily with more than 60 per cent of the votes on the first ballot in an election held in Winnipeg on Dec. 10. However, the vote was also held amidst criticism from grassroots Indigenous rights groups, Idle No More and Defenders of the Land, which believe the AFN, mandated to advance the interests of aboriginal communities across Canada, is failing and disconnected from the communities it is suppose to serve. Bellegarde lost a close race for the AFN’s top job in 2009 to Shawn Atleo, who stepped down in May after supporting Bill C-33, a controversial education bill that received opposition from many First Nations across the country. “Regardless if it’s Perry Bellegarde or anybody else in that position, I think the AFN has a lot of work to do on its relationship with the government, as Continued on A5
Gaven Crites photo
100 Mile House Fire-Rescue members Kevin Halcro, front left, Ranulph Cameron, and Paul Donnelly, right, and BC Ambulance paramedic Barb Vandenhoek, were among the first responders working diligently to free the driver of this vehicle, which rolled over on Horse Lake Road in 100 Mile House on Dec. 15.
Veteran’s surplus funds under fire Government pulls back $1 billion in unspent VA money
Carole Rooney Free Press
The federal Conservatives are taking flak for $1.1 billion in unspent Veterans Affairs (VA) funding that is going back into general government coffers. Federal Liberal VA critic Frank Valeriote says auditor general Michael Ferguson’s 2014 Fall Report also reveals the Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government has “utterly failed” to provide the mental-health services and support needed by today’s veterans. However, KamloopsThompson-Cariboo MP Cathy McLeod says a government accounting process must provide sufficient funds for each
department to cover every contingency in its statutory obligations. “And every year, including in the Liberal’s time, we are not required to pay out 100 per cent of those statutory obligations. “But ... we are spending significantly more in terms of Veterans Affairs. When the Liberals were in office, they annually spent $2.7 billion, and we spent $3.5 billion last year.” Meanwhile, Royal Canadian Legion Branch #260-100 Mile House president Bob Wangensteen says the unspent VA money going back to government in the face of closing eight more VA Canada offices is “another case of incompetence.”
“They are feathering their nest while the people they are supposed to be helping are getting nothing.” Wangensteen adds the Royal Canadian Legion “worked very hard” for a decade to help get mental illnesses, such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), accepted by government as legitimate military-caused illnesses. He agrees with the outcry across Canada calling for the unused VA money to be put into veteran assistance programs. However, Wangensteen explains he also has concerns about how direct pensions are now administered, unlike the previous charter that pays him and other veterans a pension for life.
“The New Veterans Charter states the VA was to be managed like a business ... but you don’t give a 21-year-old $250,000 and say ‘don’t call us, we’ll call you’. “That’s ridiculous, for some kid who has lost a leg or an arm. How long do you think that is going to last?” The VA Canada offices in Kelowna and Prince George have already been shut down. Now local veterans must travel to Penticton for those services. “They need to put the offices back that they had [and] they need to put back the counsellors that they let go. It’s important to help these people.” Meanwhile, Valeriote adds an “11th hour” announcement of new six-year funding Continued on A5