Photo by Whitehorse Star
Chief Daniel Morris
First Nation told to take action on election
The chief and council of the Liard First Nation
The chief and council of the Liard First Nation have been ordered by the Federal Court to hold a special public meeting to appoint an election committee and discuss a date for the next election.
The order was handed down last Thursday, following an application to the court by members of the First Nation.
“This is about enforcing our election laws, according to the letter of our election law,” George Morgan said Wednesday of the decision by Judge Roger Lafreniere.
Morgan said there was supposed to have been an election held by Dec. 16.
Members of the First Nation have accused Chief Daniel Morris and his council of being secretive and less than accountable to the membership over their three years in office after having been elected in December 2013.
The judge ordered Morris and his council to hold a special community meeting no later than Feb. 4.
The purpose of the meeting is to appoint an election committee, discuss the upcoming election and establish clear timelines for how the election will proceed, says the judge’s order.
Lafreniere’s order also directs the chief and council to provide the court with a status report of the special meeting no later than two business days after the meeting.
The chief could not be reached for comment this morning.
In a press release issued this week, Morris noted part of the delay in the election process has been negotiating with Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada to provide funding for the special meeting.
In September 2014, the federal department appointed an independent third party to manage the funding it provides the First Nation for day-to-day operations, citing lack of the required financial transparency.
An agreement with the federal department to fund the special meeting has been reached, the chief says.
Morris said in the release that holding the special meeting and an election is a top priority for the council.
Morgan, on the other hand, accused the council of purposely ducking a bona fide election.
If the election committee is appointed at the special meeting, there could be an election within six weeks of the committee’s appointment, he said.
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Comments (4)
Up 0 Down 0
Mark on Jan 11, 2017 at 6:31 pm
Daniel Morris is a boy trying to do a man's job...."but hey! Nice hair!
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Just Say'in on Jan 7, 2017 at 6:20 pm
How on Earth does the job of Chief keep alternating back and forth between the two like Daniel Morris and Liard McMillan? It shows quite clearly that Democracy can't work where there is such corruption and control.
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Not in the community on Jan 7, 2017 at 9:53 am
I am a member of LFN but I don't live there. It's sad to see this happening.
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Tlingit Gurl on Jan 5, 2017 at 3:59 pm
It should read- Ex(pired) Chief Morris. As someone following this issue for some time now, I am glad the community has someone to hold Council's feet to the fire of accountability. Keep strong and straighten out the system. It's just too bad that INAC response was solely to throw money at the problem and not step in, in a meaningful way to support the Kaska Concerned about Good Governance.