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2 Wednesday November 18 2015 POLITICS TERRITORIAL ELECTION NEWS BRIEFS Gwichin Tribal Council hands out annual payment hamper The Gwichin Tribal Council GTC Board of Directors met Nov. 12 to decide on the annual Participant Distribution payment for the 2015 scal year. Payments totaling 371 per participant will be distributed along with a family- based Christmas hamper beginning on Dec. 8 a total of 1.181 million over 814 households. The GTC would also like to remind participants particularly at this time of year to conrm that their mailing address is current with the enrolment ofcer Cheryl Wright who can be reached toll-free at 1-866-414-4670 or at cherylwgwichin.nt.ca. Thirty years of art in the NWT The NWT Arts Council has launched their 30th Anniver- sary Exhibit showcasing over 200 previous Arts Council recipients.The NWTArts Council was established in 1985 as an advisory board to the Government of the Northwest TerritoriesGNWTtosupportandpromotetheartsinthe NorthwestTerritories.Over8millioninfundinghasbeen providedtomorethan1000individualsandorganizations over the last 30 years. The exhibit includes a digital com- ponent music lm photos and writing samples that will be showcased in communities across the territory. Along withthetravelingdigitalexhibittheNWTArtsCouncilwill sponsor a series of events in Yellowknife and throughout theNWT.Visitwww.nwtartscouncil.caorwww.pwnhc.ca. Artist collective wins global award aRTLeSS Collective has won top awards for Youre Not Alone a music video PSA made with the GNWTs Depart- ment of Health and Social Services in the annual MAR- COM Awards. With over 6500 entries from around the world The MARCOM Awards are presented by the Asso- ciation of Marketing and Communication Professionals. 20 OFF ENTIRE STORE OUTERWEARFOOTWEARFASHIONS 867-874-3037email salesglworkwear.com Located in Downtown Hay River 106-62 Woodland Drive MIDNIGHT MADNESS EVENT NOV. 20 OPEN 10 am - 11 pm Some restrictions apply By DALI CARMICHAEL The Thebacha riding may be drawing attention for its battle of the sexegenarians but the candidates certainly addressed issues impacting all age groups at a forum held at the high school in Fort Smith on Nov. 12. From a lack of daycare available to young families in the community to low en- rolment rates at Aurora Col- lege to the implementation of better services for the aging population candidates Mi- chael Miltenberger Lou Se- bert and Don Jaque tackled a wide-spread range of issues over the two-hour debate. Don Jaque EditorsnoteDonJaqueisthe owner and publisher of this newspaper and its precur- sor the Slave River Journal. Jaque has operated as a journalist and small business owner within Fort Smith for the last four decades during which time he has investi- gated and editorialized about issues impacting not just his home community but the North in general. Thebacha MLA candidates spar on daycare college energy In his platform Jaque pri- oritizes the economic devel- opment and diversication of Fort Smith. He promoted es- tablishingdaycarecentresim- provingAboriginalHeadStart programmingandconsulting with the community regard- ing junior kindergarten pro- viding child care solutions to young families already in the town and to encourage en- rolment at Aurora College for those young families coming from outside regions. He ex- pressed a strong desire to ll classroomsonceagainbring- ing more business to Smith. Jaque repeatedly said he wantedtorepairafragmented communityandbringpeople togetherto address the issues impacting them like the po- tentialslidezoneontherivers edge of town. When asked about helping seniorsliveintheirownhomes and communities Jaque re- calledSmithshistoryasanex- cellentretirementcommunity and noted that in order to re- tainthattitlehesaidthelocal organizations would need to keep up with technology and best practices. Headvocatedfortheneedto hunker down scally given an incoming climate of eco- nomic shrinkage forecasted for the entire territory. To weather the potential storm Jaque said he would strive to improved business relations withHayRiverwhileadvocat- ingforaccesstoexcessenergy from the Taltson dam. Lets x this stupid thing where NUL Northland Utili- tieswhichprovidesthepower to Hay River and Yellowknife buys the power from the Northwest Territories who is the wholesaler but theyre also the retailer Jaque said. I mean its just a mess and we need to x it. Lou Sebert LouSebertistheownerand proprietorofhisownlawprac- tice in addition to teaching a numberofdifferentsubjectsat Aurora College for the last 30 years. He has held a spot on Fort Smiths town council for the last 14 years acting as the deputymayorforthelastthree. Referencing a multitude of recentstudiesashepresented hispositionsSebertcalledfor a more open and transpar- ent government system. He pointed to a pamphlet from hisrunforMLA24yearsago when he originally called for the establishment of an om- budsmans ofce at the legis- lature an issue that remains a priority for him today. Ive been going around town giving out my platform but Ive been listening to the voters also and there are cer- tainly current concerns the rst of those really is govern- ment he said. We live in a town where the government is an overwhelming presence both as an employer and a contractor. I suggest a more transparent and open gov- ernment is required. Ever the academic Sebert called for Aurora College to strengthen and diversify its programming. He addressed rumours about the possibil- ity of establishing a northern university and claimed that givenitshistoryastheeduca- tioncapitaloftheNWTFort Smithshouldbethehostofany futurepost-secondaryfacility. The best universities in the world are not built in centres of nancial and po- litical power he implied listing Harvard Cambridge and Oxford as examples. Sebert said he would sup- port the expansion of seniors assistance programming as well as nancial incentives like grants for home upkeep andtaxreliefsinordertohelp seniors age in-place. He also addressed addic- tions treatments in the NWT calling for a treatment centre in the North. Given the avail- ability of resources located in Smith he advocated for a centre to be opened in the town if possible. Michael Miltenberger Acareerpoliticianfollowing previousexperienceasajour- neymancarpenterandGNWT bureaucrat incumbent MLA MichaelMiltenbergerhasbeen inthelegislatureforthelast20 years 14 of which he has sat incabinetasahealthnance and environment minister. Previous to that he also held rolesonthemunicipallevelas a town mayor and councillor. Now its time to focus on building the NWT which should be and will be a hope- fulandexcitingtimehesaid praisingthe17thAssemblyfor its accomplishments. There are many challenges oppor- tunities locally territorially andnationally.Whenitcomes to consensus government where theres no parties and picking the MLA is key ex- perience counts. With front-row seats to the economicrealitiesoftheNWT astheministerofnanceMilt- enberger was highly support- ive of developing projects to cut down on the cost of living bycreatingconditionsforeco- nomic development. He touted his role signing transboundarywatermanage- mentagreementswithAlberta and British Columbia noting thatnewagreementsthatgive theterritoryinputonthedevel- opmentofnewprojectsandthe protection of water resources were on the way. While he agreed with his colleague that Aurora College could use a boost to ll class- roomsandenticestudentshe saidheisloathetolookatthe resourcesincludingthebricks andmortarneededtocreatea universityintheNWT.Instead he advocated for more online resourcesandformoresupport forDechintatheterritoryson- the-land university. Ontheotherendofthepop- ulationdemographicsMilten- bergersaidhelikedwhathesaw intermsofsupportforseniors inthecommunitystatingthat Fort Smith should continue doingwhatwevebeendoing andensureexistingprograms and supports stay in place. Fort Smith has an enor- mous opportunity to be a bedroom community Milt- enberger said however he identied a need for more in- vestment in housing. He also called for dedicated funds to facilitate high-end tourism. When asked about his pri- orities for the community Miltenberger put a strong focusonhealthnotingthatby cuttingoutsmokingdrinking and eating badly and getting moving the population could work together to eliminate health care costs and spend those dollars elsewhere. Thebacha MLA candidates Don Jaque Michael Miltenberger and Louis Sebert locked horns in Fort Smith on Nov. 12. PhotosCraigGilbert