Squamish Nation accused of not following through on reforms

Left: Squamish Nation Chief Ian Campbell. Right: Squamish Nation member and curent electoral officer Khelsilem Photo: File

Leadership says reform commission didn’t stick to its mandate

by Jennifer Thuncher, Squamish Chief, October 19, 2017

A prominent Squamish Nation member is speaking out about what he sees as political interference in the band’s current election reform process.

In 2015, an independent electoral commission was set up to revise the 1981 Squamish Indian Band Election Regulations. 

Keeseekoose First Nation elders spark RCMP investigation into band council

Flag of the Keeseekoose First Nation in Saskatchewan.

APTN National News, September 19, 2017

The RCMP has confirmed to APTN National News that it has launched an investigation on Keeseekoose First Nation in Saskatchewan after two elders came forward providing a stack of financial documents.

Onion Lake First Nation appeals ruling ordering it to publish financial records

Onion Lake First Nation chief Wallace Fox. Photo: Global News.

APTN National News, July 5, 2017

The Onion Lake First Nation in Saskatchewan is appealing a June court ruling ordering it to release financial information to its band members.

The case was brought by Charmaine Stick, who partnered with the Canadian Taxpayers Federation in 2016 to force the band to comply with the First Nations Financial Transparency Act – a law passed by the Stephen Harper Conservatives requiring First Nations to publish salaries and expenses online.

Protester shut down Carcross Tagish First Nation offices

‘They’re deciding our future and we don’t have a say’ says Stanley Jim

CBC News, Feb 23, 2015

A member of the Carcross Tagish First Nation shut down a council meeting over the weekend and prevented Chief Dan Cresswell and council from entering their offices Monday, protesting his government’s lack of consultation with its members.

“Right now, all I see is they’re deciding our future and we don’t have a say,” says Stanley Jim while sitting in front of the main administrative building where he built a wooden door jamb to bar the entrance. 

AFN to elect new leader amid questions about organization’s relevance

Ghislain Picard, Perry Bellegarde and Leon Jourdaine are vying for the job of national chief at the Assembly of First Nations. Voting takes place in Winnipeg on Dec. 10. (Chris Wattie/Reuters, Andrew Vaughan/Canadian Press, Facebook)

3 candidates vying to replace Shawn Atleo as Assembly of First Nations’ national chief

By Chinta Puxley, The Canadian Press/CBC News, Dec 8, 2014

Outside Winnipeg’s convention centre, a sacred fire is burning.

Inside the building, chiefs from across the country are meeting to elect a new national leader for the Assembly of First Nations amid questions on whether the organization is still a relevant voice for aboriginal people.

As the assembly prepares for some soul-searching over the next three days, many say it will take a monumental shift to regain the support of the next generation.

Shuswap chief’s salary highest in country

 Chief Paul Sam’s take-home pay higher than prime minister’s at more than $200,000

By Peter O’Neil, Vancouver Sun, October 31, 2014

OTTAWA — An elderly B.C. First Nations chief and his ex-wife, along with one of their sons and a grandson, received more than $4.1 million in remuneration over the past four years.Shuswap First Nation Chief Paul Sam, 80, gets a tax-free salary that has averaged $264,000 over that period to run a tiny reserve near Invermere, a resort community near the Alberta border.The Shuswap have 267 members, of whom just 87 live on the reserve.His son, Dean Martin, is doing even better, with an average annual salary of $536,000 over the four years, running a band corporation that operates various businesses on and near the reserve.