Housing, mental health and hazardous dust top of mind for Aivilik candidates
Hannah Angootealuk and Solomon Malliki face off to represent Coral Harbour and Naujaat
Hannah Angootealuk, left, and Solomon Malliki are running to represent the Aivilik riding in the Oct. 27 territorial election. (Photos courtesy of Hannah Angootealuk and Solomon Malliki)
Nunatsiaq News is publishing riding profiles ahead of the Oct. 27 territorial election. Keep your eye on our website to learn more about who is running in your area.
The former secretary treasurer of Kivalliq Inuit Association is the sole challenger of incumbent MLA Solomon Malliki for the Aivilik seat at the legislative assembly.
The Aivilik riding represents two of the most western communities in the Kivalliq Region: Coral Harbour and Naujaat, with a total population of 2,260.
Hannah Angootealuk is running against Malliki. She says one of the main issues her community of Coral Harbour faces is a lack of mental health services.
“Often when someone needs help mentally, they have to go south and stay there,” she said.
“They could have been home with family, eating their traditional food.”
Also, dust on the unpaved road of Coral Harbour chokes the community in the summers and is a real “health hazard,” Angootealuk said.
“We’ve been trying to mention this for years, but nothing [has] happened,” she said.
As a Coral Harbour resident, she said she is more familiar with the issues in her home community but she will talk to the Naujaat hamlet council to familiarize herself with the concerns in that community as well.
Angootealuk is a mother of five and a grandmother of 20. She has been Coral Harbour’s representative for Kivalliq Inuit Association, the entity responsible for promoting the rights of Kivalliq Inuit, for six years.
She also briefly sat as the organization’s secretary-treasurer and for more than 20 years has volunteered with the community’s search and rescue operations.
In 2007, she was hired to travel across Inuit communities with the Inuit health survey conducted by the Nunavut government and federal government, Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. and several universities.
Malliki is a resident of Naujaat, running for re-election after one term as MLA.
“Four years seem to be long, but when you’re actually working as an MLA it’s a very short time,” he said.
“I feel like I can do much more.”
Malliki’s top priority if he gets re-elected is to alleviate the housing shortage. He wants to “expedite” housing construction.
“Last government put lots of emphasis on housing, but only 18 units were built in [the term of] the last assembly,” he said.
He said Coral Harbour and Naujaat face issues similar to other Nunavut communities, like high rates of suicide and problems relating to medical travel.
Malliki said the previous government has conducted many studies on these Nunavut-wide issues and it’s time for the government to “make use” of them.
A father of five and owner of an outfitting business in Naujaat, Malliki was the chair of the regular members’ caucus at the legislative assembly during his first term.
He was the one to raise the motion during the previous government to oust Premier P.J. Akeeagok.
“It is what it is,” he said, adding that he hasn’t been thinking about his failed attempt to remove the premier.
Mallaki doesn’t belong in legislative.
And where do you belong?
Go! Solomon! Go!
Go! Craig! Go!
Go! Mary! Go!
Go! Joanna! Go!
Go! George! Go!
I cannot forget
GO! JANET! GO!
We need midwives and mental health services in Nunavik.
“Often when someone needs help mentally, they have to go south and stay there,” she said.
“They could have been home with family, eating their traditional food.”
Also, dust on the unpaved road of Coral Harbour chokes the community in the summers and is a real “health hazard,” Angootealuk said.”
I can’t speak about the other candidate but Angootealuk’s comments demonstrate her lack of credibility or capability
Malliki was a mix of overly combative, impulsive and not well informed when he was in the assembly.
He led efforts to try an unseat the premier while unable to articulate why. He attacked non-binary individuals without having even spoken with that community.
Maybe try something different Aivilik.
Constituents should all recall that Mr. Malliki was a member of the last Government. This makes it ever more interesting that he brings up in the space provided by Nunatsiaq; the housing failure and points to the 18 homes delivered so far (after 3 years) of NU 3000 and the need to improve it (although he offers no information on how he would do that). The real questions here is. Where Mr. Malliki has been for the last 3 years since NU 3000 was introduced? Where were his questions to the Minister of Housing during the sitting of the Legislative Assembly in the last 12 Months since it was clearly identified that NHC and NU 3000 were not delivering on their promises? The simple fact is, he asked NONE. ZERO questions regarding the failure. The Legislative Assembly tapes from October of 2024 up to the last sitting in September 2025 clearly show this. More interesting is that this past MLA started receiving information at the same time as all the other MLA’s regarding the fiasco surrounding NU 3000 and the NHC-NCCD Sole-Source Contract. What did he do with that information? Absolutely nothing. The comments now coming from this candidate is a demonstration to the constituents of his riding that he believes they are not paying attention and do not care. Only at election time is it worth bringing housing up because it is getting so much exposure and he wants to be appearing to be concerned about it. Constituents can ask him if he was so occupied with Housing why did he not even make a minor attempt to bring it up in the last government and try and bring about change.
You can then add to the above his questionable statements made in the Assembly regarding immigrant workers and non-binary people and their role in the broader growth and development of Nunavut. If one watches and reads what he said, one begins to see an MLA who is clearly out of touch with what is happening in Nunavut and what Nunavut needs to progress into the future. His comments regarding non-binary people and immigrants should raise flags about this candidate’s fitness to represent all Nunavummiut.
His performance in the last sitting of the Legislative Assembly was not and should not be a proud moment for his MLA. He should be asked to clarify his position clearly on where he stands regarding immigrants coming to Nunavut and the rights of non-binary people. Nunavummiut deserve to clearly understand where this past MLA stands on these issues.
The other candidate Mrs. Angootealuk, as already pointed out by another commentator, appears to lack a grandeur vision for Nunavut. It is possible she was trying to point out inadequate “in community” availability of care for people facing mental health issues when she mentions people being able to stay home. And perhaps the need to improve overall mental health care in her community and throughout Nunavut. At least one can hope that was what she was trying to say. Her commentary about dust and roads is a local issue that the Hamlet is generally responsible for addressing. If the Hamlet needs infrastructure dollars to make improvements to the roads, they normally work with their MLA to try and secure funding. Maybe this was not done through the last MLA? So maybe that is what she is attempting to point out and what she would try and work on. Hard to say. Constituents can ask her if she understands she is not running for the mayor position. She is running for a position as an MLA to represent not only her community but all of Nunavut.
Overall, a tough one for the constituents of this riding. Regardless of the challenge, ask those candidate tough questions and expect tangible answers. Then give a lift to and Elder, grab a friend or family member and GO VOTE!