Minister Stewart off to good start with NTI

DWANE WILKIN

It was just an unexpected phone call.

By the time the conversation was over, though, Canada’s new minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development had left a lasting impression.

Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. leader Jose Kusugak recalls that he was drafting a letter of congratulations, following Jane Stewart’s appointment a month ago, when the call came in.

“When a minister makes a point of calling us first, you do feel like, ‘Oh good, here’s a person genuinely wanting to work with Inuit,'” said Kusugak.

“We usually take a back seat in a long line of congratulators.”

Two weeks later, Kusugak found himself in Ottawa during national Aboriginal Day celebrations. And there was Stewart again, this time addressing a crowd before the unveiling of an inukshuk at Rideau Hall.

Kusugak said he liked what he heard, and thinks Stewart has the makings of a good minister, and a great ally for Nunavut.

“She impressed me when she spoke,” said Kusugak. “Later I met her and she was very hospitable, and said she looked forward to visiting us here in Iqaluit.”

After just a few weeks in office, Stewart already seems to have a firm grasp of the issues facing the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, and is eager to work with NTI and the territorial government toward a smooth transition in 1999.

She has also suggested publicly that southern Canadian attitudes toward the North and aboriginal affairs, in particluar, indicate that Canadians want to learn more about their aboriginal compatriots.

“I really had the sense that she genuinely wants to work closely with us,” said Kusugak.

Some observers think that a strong and credible ally with the federal government is more important than ever before, now that the Reform Party has formed the official opposition.

Mike Scott, the opposition critic for Indian affairs and northern development, told Nunatsiaq News this week that his party still has serious concerns about Nunavut’s finances.

“The cost of maintaining the Nunavut government, as outlined in the (land-claims) agreement, we think is going to be horrendously expensive, and we don’t understand how that can work on a perpetual basis,” Scott said.

The Reform Party will want to take a close look at how the new territory can become self-sustaining, Scott said, so that Canadians aren’t expected to subsidize it indefinitely.

Scott admitted he hadn’t had time yet to make himself completely familiar with the land claim Agreement, but would do so before Parliament reconvenes at the end of the summer.