01-06-2013 11:12 AM
Below is a letter written by a well informed friend of mine. He is a teacher of 30 years. He is probably the most knowledgeable individual that I know when it comes to current affairs, politics and the world siutation. He is meticulous in his research. The letter is in response to a column in the Londoner:
For several years now I have read your weekly column in the Londoner and found it always to be the voice of reason and logic.
I don't wish to disparage the paper but it is often the only column I find in this publication worth my time to peruse. That is why I was most surprised by the stance you took in your last article: Chief deserves a meeting with the PM.
Columnist Christina Blizzard provided sobering details which suggested otherwise in her Saturday, January 21st, 2012 column in the London Free Press: Help is there, Attawapiskat must step up (E2). Since 2008 De Beers has given the reserve $10 - 11 million in direct payments to the chief. Under the impact-benefit agreement (IBA) the company is not allowed to reveal the full amount it pays into the trust fund. Neither would Chief Theresa Spence reveal those details when Ms Blizzard requested clarification. As Ms Blizzard pointed out in the aforementioned column, what is known is that $325 million in contracts have been awarded to the wholly owned Attawapiskat businesses or joint ventures to date. This for an on reserve population of merely 1,549 (2011 figures: Wikipedia). Last year alone, the reserve got $51 million in contracts. Your article did not reference these sizeable sources of funding, only the $90 million the federal government additionally gave and for which disbursement of funds Spence refuses to give an auditing.
Neither did you point out as Kris Sims did (Spence, kin made $221K+ in a year. London Free Press: 4 January 2013: B2) that she and her partner made some $250,000 last year alone. Nor, did you point out as MACLEAN'S magazine revealed this week (Hungry for change: 14 Jan. 2013: 11) that Theresa Spence is using a Facebook account as a global vehicle for donations to go directly into the account of her partner, Clayton Kennedy, co-manager of Attawapiskat. And how will those undoubtedly sizeable global contributions be dispersed or audited if the Canadian people themselves are not permitted to know how their own enormous outlays for the Attawapiskat reserve were spent?
In your article on Thursday, you allude to the larger problem of some 100 out of the Canadian reserves being in dire poverty but not to the fact that 80 First Nations band chiefs and council members raked in more income in 2008 and 2009 than the Prime Minister himself and that more than 220 paid themselves more than their respective provincial Premiers earn (Chiefs' pay raises taxpayer ire. London Free Press. 23 Nov. 2010: B3). Additionally, more than 704 reserve politicians made more than $100,000 though the average population of First Nations reserves was merely 1,142 as that same article highlighted.
In short, for the first time in my acquaintance I believe you betrayed your journalistic integrity. Possibly, it was because you mention members of your family and friends being First Nations people?
I would agree with Herman Gooden (Attawapiskat chief fronts a movement stuck in neutral. London Free Press. 5 January 2013: E2) that Theresa Spence is practicing "a kind of emotional blackmail." Likewise, you are as well by your careful editing out of salient details necessary for your readers understanding. Your article was is a true example of demagoguery. And in light of your other journalistic efforts, I find that a source of true regret.
01-06-2013 06:38 PM
Judges are not infallible.
The documentary: "And Justice for All" is a case in point. The true story of an ethical Baltimore defense lawyer disgusted with rampant legal corruption asked to defend a judge. And the judge is guilty. GUILTY.
01-06-2013 06:45 PM
Almond - I asked several ornithologists (none of whom are PSW's) about the two birds, and one of them told me the name of the stifled warbler is Edith, and the stifler goes by the name Archie. I am thinking that he may be right, but there are two sides to every warbler.
01-06-2013 06:50 PM
No more warbling; just listen to the silence.
01-06-2013 06:54 PM
wrong!!!
And not always right, either. People can keep two sets of books. People can omit keeping a set of books that might be audited.
01-06-2013 07:14 PM
Not to be out done by PD here's my bird thingy:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=COfX0FdhGeU&feature=fvwp
01-06-2013 07:18 PM
01-06-2013 07:23 PM
Mr. Valve, I think the caption on your bird thingy said that the bird's name was "Oiseau". That is a neat name for a bird. Better than Edith, imo.
01-06-2013 07:28 PM
That sure is one odd looking duck Mr. Valve. Hope you didn't shoot ole Oiseau; probably terrible eating.
01-06-2013 07:40 PM
Not to be out done by PD here's my bird thingy:
That is one smart bird. Ticks me off that he is a better fisherman than I am. Of course, I was always more interested in sitting on the shore with a good bottle of wine, some nice aged cheddar, a piece of good European bread and a few slices of dry salami. Occasionally, I would actually throw a line in the water.
Nothing better than fishing to take the stress away ]:)
01-06-2013 07:49 PM
i think Mr. Oiseau is a night heron or something of the like; he is smarter than the fish, from all indications.
now shhhhh.....
01-06-2013 08:02 PM
Wonder what that oiseau is using for bait, something he/she upchucked or outchucked?
01-06-2013 08:09 PM
Whatever keeps the hapless fish coming back for more.
01-07-2013 10:49 AM
I stand by how I feel about this topic and everyone knows why but this one number made me wanna cry
what is known is that $325 million in contracts have been awarded to the wholly owned Attawapiskat businesses or joint ventures to date. This for an on reserve population of merely 1,549
That is Crazy if these numbers are indeed accurate I would say the Goverment should go on a time idle protest...
I hope these numbers are wrong because if our goverment put that much into supporting 1500 people that makes me wanna puke ...
01-07-2013 10:54 AM
Did you know that in the middle of the so-called housing crisis where they need more money that Chief Theresa and the band has $9 million stock portfolio...Attiwapiskat has $9 million [in stocks] - like in Apple, in China Mobile, in Banks. Maybe if you have a housing crisis you sell a few stocks."
I would like the Chief to stop her "soup diet"--it's NOT a hunger strike if your eating soup it's a DIET. And respond to this!
01-07-2013 11:11 AM
It was actually a little humorous to hear the broadcasters on QP do a basic, if not exactly accurate, nutritional analysis of Ms. Spence's soup diet, yesterday.
Inaccurate or not, they made their point.
01-07-2013 12:16 PM
As everyone is probably well aware of ……I defend the Native people. I know the history and I know what is put out in the media by either the government or put out in blogs and media letters and chat rooms by other people and the information is either totally untrue or half truths.
If people found the time to watch the four part videos done by Dr Palmater it shows that often things people hear, have twists and turns. It could be rules set down by the government that tie the hands of Natives on the Rez, or it could be information that they got x amount of money but when that is researched it turns out that most of the money was allocated by the government for specific projects and because of the location of certain Rez’s the cost factor is a lot more than we would find in our urban areas. It could be a figure thrown out like a Rez got 90 Million and that’s all that is said….so the average person thinks….Wow how can they not live off 90Mil. But then when the whole truth is told the 90 Mil was over 10 years….that’s 10 Mil a year and then you take into consideration all the projects that need to be done in a remote area and it doesn’t take much to go through 10 Mil a year. Obviously the auditors and the judge know the costs.
Here’s another figure just thrown out…..” $325 million in contracts have been awarded to the wholly owned Attawapiskat businesses or joint ventures to date.”. Lot of money 325 Mil. Sounds like they are just rolling in cash. What a good researcher does is find out things like ….
a) The contracts may have been ‘awarded’ but did the money ever actually come and did the contracts even get started.
b) And what were the cost factors of the contracts in a remote area? The devil is often in the ‘details’.
But with all this so-called information coming out of who knows where about Natives and Reservations….does it not seem strange that the government with all their power and information gathering have not only not made this ‘information’ public but also after a government audit overseen by a judge it was determined that there were no irregularities and no wrong doing! This is all the power the government needs for public favour and yet they do not use it…..why? Because I believe either the information is totally false, or half truths (that if the government used it they would look foolish) or….because of government restrictions on the Native people it would give the public information they don’t want the public to know.
Do people actually think that Native people are so low that a chief would sit back and watch their own people in distress but have all the money in the world to solve the problem but …….won’t? Do people actually think that Native people are like that? Then you don’t know Native people at all.
I want to see Chief Spence meet with Harper and I would like to see the Chief and Harper go at it on TV. I don’t care if it takes hours. I want to see them ‘both’ answer the questions that the general public have. I want to see the so-called information that floods the media and the Internet answered by both. If they can make time for hockey games on CBC, then make time for this. Get it all out in the open and get it done! I have no doubt that Chief Spence and other Chiefs and even the well versed Dr Palmater who worked for the government will be glad to show up…..but will Harper or his government?
To talk about Chief Spence and what she is eating is mockery, subtle humour hiding a deeper darker intent and not worth addressing.
01-07-2013 12:21 PM
Why is the big chief craving publicity ?
It couldn’t possibly be for more money —
her Attawapiskat Indian band has received $90 million from Harper so far, and has just 1,500 people there. It’s just 300 homes.
Do the math: The Attawapiskat band received $34 million in 2011. And the local diamond mine spent $51 million in town. That’s $85 million, for 300 families. That’s $280,000 per family. Tax free.
So how come so many in Attawapiskat live in leaky, cold shacks? Not the chief of course; she has a sturdy, well-heated house and drives an Escalade. Her boyfriend is the band manager — his contract is for $850 a day, plus expenses. Why does the band have $8.9 million in the stock market, in shares like Google and Pepsi and Exxon, but not enough money to fix some leaks? Why are there 21 politicans on the payroll of a tiny town? Why did Spence once bill the town $8,000 a month to manage the daycare?
01-07-2013 12:39 PM
that’s 10 Mil a year and then you take into consideration all the projects that need to be done in a remote area and it doesn’t take much to go through 10 Mil a year.
Previously in a post not sure if it was your but someone said Native are talented in the Construction area so if they did the work that would put millions into there own pocket and give many families extra paycheck ...
Maybe it has to be contracted due to some rules i am unaware of but I mean if they just got the materials to build homes and built them themselves would that not put millions in there pockets ...
IF not I know 10 million would not be much for sure but i just don't understand why there now smarter with there money .. Regardless of what is owed why not help make a better life for yourself ..
i mean say they need 50 homes ... you know how much money Natives on the reserve could make by building there own homes..
Not only would they have $$ left over but you would have 100's collecting good Paycheck for working..Not to Mention the feeling of Pride it would give them to make them feel like they use to when they took care of themselves and built there own homes ..
I know When I built my First home It was about the 4th proudest day in my life .. i mean i lost the house but hey i was still proud for 2 years LOL
01-07-2013 01:01 PM
Surprise, surprise, not another Sun article!
Attawapiskat audit finds 'no evidence of due diligence'
The accounting firm hired to audit the finances of the troubled Attawapiskat First Nation reserve in northern Ontario says there is little or no documentation for millions of dollars spent by the band, CBC News has learned.
But a spokesman for Attawapiskat Chief Theresa Spence suggested Monday morning that the audit was wrong and this leak was timed to discredit her as she continues her hunger strike amid national Idle No More protests.
The unreleased audit was requested by the federal government to ensure that the approximately $104 million it provided to Attawapiskat between April 2005 and November 2011 was spent as it should have been.
CBC News has obtained a copy of the audit. The funding was intended for housing, sewage, education and other services.
In a letter dated Sept. 20, 2012, that was written by Deloitte to Chief Spence and copied to the Department of Aboriginal Affairs, that auditing firm says that of 505 transactions reviewed, more than 400 lacked proper documentation.
The letter says "an average of 81 per cent of files did not have adequate supporting documents and over 60 per cent had no documentation of the reason for payment."
The letter to Spence also says there is "no evidence of due diligence on the part of Attawapiskat of funding provided by Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada for housing projects and Health Canada for health-related projects."
CBC News' National Affairs Editor Chris Hall says the audit shows "fairly significant findings" about the problems on the reserve, "but what the audit could not do really was to determine whether the money was spent the way it was intended to be."
Deloitte said it could not conclude that the payments made by the band council were in accordance with the terms and conditions of funding agreements with the federal government.
Overall, the report recommends:
- Stricter enforcement measures.
- More eligibility requirements.
- More reviews of the First Nation's record-keeping.
The audit also noted "significant staff turnover" that had resulted in a "corporate memory loss" for transactions reported prior to 2010. Deloitte had difficulty tracing some of the earlier transactions because of changes in Attawapiskat's record-keeping systems.
Some of the details of specific transactions are blacked out in the copy obtained by CBC News, but in some cases, the report shows expenditures of five and six figures without any supporting documentation found by the audit.
Deloitte reported its finding to Spence in late August. It's not known what she or the band council did in response to the findings.
State of emergency declared last winter
The Attawapiskat First Nation was placed under co-management more than a decade ago – a measure taken by the federal government to attempt to improve financial administration.
The band's co-manager, Clayton Kennedy, acknowledged being in a romantic relationship with the band's chief, Spence. But he denied any conflict of interest.
Spence declared a state of emergency on the reserve in the fall of 2011, citing a critical need for housing.
On Nov. 30, 2011, the federal government appointed a third-party manager to oversee the band's operations, citing urgent health and safety issues and a need for immediate action to remedy the problems. Spence and the band council tried to block the move with a court injunction.
Amid much media coverage, the government pledged to provide emergency housing. About two dozen modular homes were built and trucked to the community over last winter's ice roads.
The third-party manager was removed April 19, 2012, based on progress that was made and the fact the First Nation returned to co-management.
Spence spokesman suggests audit is wrong
Spence has been on a hunger strike since Dec. 11, camped out in an aboriginal education centre on Victoria Island in the Ottawa River between downtown Ottawa and Gatineau, Que. She's demanding a meeting with Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Gov. Gen. David Johnston to discuss what she characterizes as "treaty issues" between First Nations and the Crown.
Spence's high-profile decision to forgo solid food until she gets her meeting is part of a nationwide series of protests, rallies and blockades under the banner of the grassroots Idle No More movement.
Spence's team was keeping reporters away from Spence on Monday morning, saying she was "focusing on her hunger strike" and accusing the media of not reporting their "honest information" back to Canadians.
Spence's spokesman, Danny Metatawabin, suggested that the audit was "absolutely," wrong but wouldn't comment further on its contents.
He also agreed with a suggestion that the audit was released to discredit Spence.
"The government's doing that," he said. "They're trying to undermine the process, the movement of the people."
"You have to understand what we're doing here. It's for all First Nations communities under the treaty, the nation to nation relationship," he said. "We should be undermining the prime minister. We should be undermining the Department of Indian Affairs for creating that injustice."
Harper agreed to meet with chiefs from First Nations this Friday and Spence has said she will attend, but is not giving up her hunger strike until she sees the outcome of the meeting.
On Friday, reporters asked Grand Chief Stan Louttit, who represents the northern Ontario region that includes Attawapiskat, about the status of the audit, which the band council agreed to when the First Nations problems first came under scrutiny.
"It is very, very difficult to do business in a remote community," Louttit said. "The average Canadian out there, they see millions and millions, and they just get concerned and said, 'Hey, there's something going on there.'
"But I challenge those people, come to the community and look at the books, and come and live there for a couple of weeks and you'll see," he said.
"The audit speaks for itself," said Jan O'Driscoll, the press secretary for Aboriginal Affairs Minister John Duncan. "We agree with its conclusions and recommendations."
Donations directed to Spence's partner
Spence's spokesman has been refusing to answer questions about the financial management in Attawapiskat, including one about a Facebook post asking for donations to support Spence's protest.
Macleans.ca reported Dec. 27 that Spence's team was offering bank account information on the official Facebook page of the hunger strike, for those who wanted to make donations. The account was listed as belonging to Kennedy, Spence's live-in partner and the band's co-manager.
When someone commented on the post to say that the tribal council that runs the region around Attawapiskat was also taking donations, the Spence supporter who first posted the account information replied that Spence "does not want anybody but Clay to handle finances."
The Facebook post has since been removed.
http://news.ca.msn.com/top-stories/attawapiskat-audit-finds-no-evidence-of-due-diligence-1
01-07-2013 01:09 PM
10 mil may not go far BUT my house is about 40 years old the one beside me is 75 and the one down the street is about 125 years old.
They need 300 houses (at most) they do not need new houses each year! 10 mil should build at least 100 houses closer to 200 since 60% or more of the value of a house is the land and they already have that. and like i say they only have to build houses every 60 years or so unless they are not bothering to actually do maintance on them