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4 Wednesday December 2 2015 The Northern Journal is an independent newspaper covering news and events in the western Arctic and northern Alberta. The Northern Journal is published weekly by Cascade Publishing Ltd. Printed at Star Press Inc. Wainwright AB. Publisher................................................................................. Don Jaque 867-872-3000 ext.21 donnorj.ca Editor..................................................................................... Craig Gilbert 867-872-3000 ext.24 newsnorj.ca Reporter....................................................................... Dali Carmichael 867-872-3000 ext.25 reporternorj.ca Comptroller .......................................................Jessica Dell 867-872-3000 ext.20 webnorj.ca Advertising........................................................................... 867-872-3000 ext.26 adsnorj.ca Administration............................................Jeremy Turcotte 867-872-3000 ext.26 adminnorj.ca Production Manager ......................................Sandra Jaque 867-872-3000 ext.22 sandranorj.ca Graphics........................................................Paul Bannister 867-872-3000 ext.27 graphicsnorj.ca Letters to the Editor Policy The Northern Journal welcomes letters to the editor. Letters must be signed and include a phone number so the author can be veried. Names will be withheld on request in special circumstances where the reasons are determined to be valid. The Journal reserves the right to edit letters for length libel clarity and taste. Opinions expressed in letters and columns are not necessarily those of the publisher or editor. EDITORIAL LETTER TO THE EDITOR 2013 CCNA BLUE RIBBON CANADIAN COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER AWARD 2013 C M C A AUDITED Advertising Deadlines Display ad deadline is Thursday at 400 p.m. Classied ad deadline is Thursday at 500 p.m. Email adsnorj.ca Subscription Rates Prices include GST. 47.25 in Fort Smith 52.50 elsewhere in Canada 105 in the USA overseas 164.30. The Northern Journal acknowledges the nancial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund CPF for our publishing activities. What one drunk may cost you Advice on creating a safer holiday party Dear Editor This is always a fun time of year with plenty of food friends and often open bars provided by friends and employers. That was certainly the case a few years back when a woman be- came drunk at her ofce Christmas party drove home in a storm and was involved in a horric crash that rendered her brain-injured and totally disabled. Her name was Linda and she worked at a real estate brokerage in Bar- rie. Chances are you have heard of the case because it attracted national media coverage. Many people found it hard to believe that a drunk driver could sue her employer for becoming drunk at an ofce party and then injuring herself in a car crash. Whatwasmissingfromthecoveragewasthe factthatLindawasareceptionistandwaswork- ingduringtheofcepartywhichstartedinthe afternoon.Herbossallowedworkerstoconsume alcoholintheworkplacewithoutanycontrolor oversight.Theyhadacasualself-serveopenbar scenario. Other employees noticed Linda had too much to drink before she left in her vehicle yet her boss thought she seemed ne. ThejudgeultimatelyfoundinLindasfavour. However he also found that she was 75 per cent responsible for her own actions. In other words she would only recover 25 per cent of her damages as determined by the trial judge. The case settled after the Court of Appeal or- dered a new trial on the basis that the Judge erred in discharging the jury from the case. The case highlighted the legal responsi- bility that an employer has a duty to keep employees safe in the workplace. Once an employer introduces alcohol into the work- place they assume a legal responsibility to ensure that employees do not drive home impaired and injure themselves or injure someone else. This same legal responsibil- ity extends to parties hosted at home with family and friends. How to make ofce and home parties safer Ofce and house parties should be held in a safe environment especially if there is an open bar. If its a work party hire profes- sional staff to serve alcohol and hold your party at a place that is in the business of hosting parties. If you offer an open bar at a holiday party take the extra step and pro- vide free taxi travel to everyone. This has be- come easier and more affordable with taxi services such as Uber. There is no reason to drink and drive especially if everyone has free access to a taxi ride home. Drinking and driving is a persistent social problem that peaks during the holiday period. Employersandprivatesocialpartyhostsmust do their part in protecting their employees friends family and the public if they are going to introduce alcohol into a social gathering. Robert Durante is a partner at Oatley Vig- mond personal injury law rm in Ontario. Change with substance is rarely easy or fast. Until 1905 when Alberta and Saskatch- ewan were created the Northwest Territories was vast stretching from the Yukon to the Atlantic. It was governed by an elected coun- cil - the denition of responsible government. That year however the Commissioners ofce was created and lled by a southern govern- ment administrator. By 1921 the genesis of the NWT Legislative Assembly we are familiar with a four-member board of southern ap- pointees had joined the Commissioner. Over the following decades the board gradually grew in number and improved its Northern representation. The rst Northern represen- tative joined in 1947 by 1966 southerners were outnumbered. It took three-quarters of a century of lead- ership appointed and imposed by Ottawa for Northerners to gain the right to vote. It need not take that long to reforge consensus government which is to the NWT as health- care is to Canada helping dene and colour a unique identity as frontier-dwellers into something more responsive. Consensus for change NWT residents are governed by the consti- tution of Canada and the Charter of Rights but the authority and structure of govern- ment are laid out in the NWT Act Canada and the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act NWT. There has never been a discussion with the people involved on how NWT elections should take place. By the time this issue of the Northern Jour- nal hits the streets judicial recounts in three ridings will be complete and all 19 MLAs will ofcially be considered elected. The next step in what is being touted as a more open and more transparent transition process is the selection of the premier and cabinet minis- ters. Elected MLAs are already jockeying for position and sharing with each other - but no one else - who they think should form the next cabinet. Consensus government can be incredibly effective as long as the members believe in and apply its principles and tenets which is essentially about working together collabo- ration nding common ground and working with that one Yellowknife MLA told the Journal last week. Things do have to evolve. Weve done things a certain way for a number of years. It cant hurt to try something else. Asked whether he would let his name stand for premier another MLA-elect dodged the question but offered insight into the kind of person who should. The Northwest Territories is a very di- verse part of Canada and its important we have a premier who understands that diver- sity and can represent the entire NWT and priorities and needs of all Northerners ad- equately he said. Thats what Im looking for in a premier also one that respects the choice my constituents have made by elect- ing me and my platform and will work with me to implement my platform as an agenda of the government. He observed that NWT voters are not com- fortable with how the government is chosen andthatotheroptionsshouldbeexploredwith an eye to regaining condence among voters that the assembly is accountable. No one is well served by a secret process. Going through a month-long election cam- paign in the public eye then moving the selec- tion of the executive council to a backroom is like having the nish of the Kentucky Derby in a tunnel with horses and jockeys hidden from view then asking all those betters in the stands to trust the results they are given. In the process to select a premier each candidate can make a 20-minute speech to the Assembly followed by a question-and- answer period. Each MLA is entitled to ask candidates up to three questions. That exer- cise is open to the public and broadcast on television but that is the extent of citizen involvement a virtual one-way street. After the premier is selected members of the Ex- ecutive Council are appointed by the Legis- lative Assembly. Some members of the last assembly mused that throwing back the curtain and exposing who each MLA supports for cabinet speaker or premier could cause grudges and friction inhibiting the assembly from operating ef- ciently once the dust has settled. Here is a suggestion What if the premier and cabinet were elected by the people in a second public ballot Why not remove the tunnel from the racetrack and trust the elec- torate to select who will be in power for four years a feat that anywhere else in Canada with the exception of Nunavut takes a ma- jority government win. Maybe the process is already optimized but the discussion is worth having and any discussion worth having is worth having with the body politic involved. Northerners should have their say - a conference on gov- ernance is long overdue. Moving the selection of the executive council to a backroom is like having the nish of the Kentucky Derby in a tunnel Alberta MLA Manmeet Bhullar was killed on the QE II on Nov. 23. The former Progressive Conservative cabinet minister had left his car to help another motorist when a semi lost control and struck him. He was 35. PhotocourtesyofWikimediaCommons