Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I'm going to speak more on the process as the question. The bill contemplates that the minister will make reports to the House of Commons and will consult with those who are willing and with “organizations”. Then I go back to the point that the organizations are not the proper au

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you. I'll be as brief as possible. Forgive me if I'm going to switch hats as I go along. First, I have a message from the executive board of the Treaty 8 chiefs of Alberta. We are fundamentally opposed to Bill C-428 for reasons of process. We are first nations with a tre

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I am Chief Roland Twinn, chief of the Sawridge First Nation. I'm also grand chief of the Treaty 8 First Nations of Alberta.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  No.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  No.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  As far as the council in our acts is concerned, I believe we have to expose all of our incomes. The private sector is a little bit of a grey area for a part-time council member. The chief is most likely going to be held under much more scrutiny, because our council is part-time.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I believe it's a fallback to the old ways. We are governments, as asserted. I do believe consultation with us should be required of anything that could affect our aboriginal and treaty rights. I do believe that if you're going to make laws to govern people, they should have an in

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Yes.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  We are not a member of the Financial Management Board. What we've done, we've done under our section 35 Canadian Constitution rights, and we have done this for ourselves. Our laws are not static, they're not set in stone, and as the sophistication of membership and their requirem

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Through our process, we present the audit. Through our financial administration act, the members have the ability to bring their own financial people in and review the books of the first nation. If they have questions and they are not comfortable with the answers they are getting

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Although I'll try to be brief, it's not a simple answer. It could give competitors an unfair advantage when it comes to some of our businesses. We have a company that does brushing and clearing. I'm sure some of the larger companies that are competitors would love to be able to

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  The confidentiality agreement may not be exposed in its entirety, but any financial contributions would be, which could cause disruption when it comes to negotiations with the oil companies. They don't want Sawridge to know what kind of a deal they struck with Bigstone. But if we

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Most definitely. It puts on an extra onus, and it kind of paints a picture, again, that first nations are unaccountable or untrustworthy. Our nation has been in business since 1972, and we've never had any problems. We are in the mainstream economy. That's why we went to the cour

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Good afternoon, esteemed members of the standing committee. I received a letter just yesterday from the chiefs of the Lesser Slave Lake Indian Regional Council in support of my submissions to this table and the proposed amendments. First, thank you for the invitation to appear

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  So even as far as a couple of $100 tickets go, I have to present that to the membership. The members of the Sawridge First Nation have provided themselves with standards of accountability and transparency that go far beyond those available to the people of Canada. We have gone f