Mr. Speaker, it sounds to me like it is another effort on the part of both parties to put people like me down. They do not want to hear what life is actually like on so many of the reserves. I know that many of the people I have talked to are suffering to a great extent.
People are asking that these types of agreements address three things. They want accountability. These are the elders. I am not talking about a bunch of young whipper-snappers. I am talking about the elders, the people who have the wisdom. They want democracy and they want equality.
The auditor general has pointed that out six years in a row. Something has to be done about the accountability not only on the reserves, but in the House. We are accountable to the taxpayers of Canada and the chiefs and councils on the reserves must be accountable to their people. With what I have seen with my own eyes on the reserves, these kind of agreements are not going to address the problem.
Today one fellow from Alberta commented to me, “What about the grassroots? The money will be given to a few. How do we know that we all will be able to share?” This is the Nisga'a people. “How do we know that we will all be able to share on an equitable basis?” No property rights, no nothing. They ask me “How do we know that we are going to be able to live a decent life? Are we going to be at the hands of the council and their families? Will it be nepotism? Are we going to go through the whole problem again?”
In my riding the Stoney reserve has had a three year investigation going on. Up to 43 possible charges are to be laid concerning mismanagement and not looking after the best interests of the people who are involved.
All members from every party in this place had the opportunity to go out there and hear the word. However, they cannot pull themselves out of the chambers to go to these reserves. They like to go to the council chambers. Maybe they would go to the chief's house, but they would not get down in the dirt with the grassroots people. They would rather go to the highfaluting elite people and say “We will look after you”. They are doing a poor job of it.
The member from wherever he is over there does not have any brains. All he can do is laugh. He has no comments. It is a shame he is a representative. If those members are going to say something, I wait excitedly for something valuable to come out of their mouths. I know it will never happen with that member, not in 100 years.
I encourage all hon. members. For six years the report from the auditor general has been looked at. What is the matter? Can they not read? Do they not understand? The auditor general is saying most passionately that there is no accountability in this whole area and it has to be addressed. If the government is going to enter into agreements like this, then for Pete's sake, build it in. There it is. I have read it.
I want to refer to one clause in here on page 113, the fisheries. I want to read the clause for my friends from the NDP in particular: “In the event of inconsistency or conflict between a Nisga'a law made under paragraph 69 or 70 and a federal or provincial law, the Nisga'a law will prevail”.
It says that several times in here. I dare these people to indicate that does not mean it will override the laws of the federal government or the provincial government.
I have one final comment. It is really too bad that the member across the way who likes to laugh so much does not go to the reserves and see the sick poverty, the third world conditions. Let us see if he would like to laugh then.