Métis Tiff – check out article in Lloydminster Meridian Booster

http://www.meridianbooster.com/News/389336.html

Internal tiff puts $500,000 in limbo
Internal squabbling has put half a million dollars for the Métis Nation of Alberta up in the air.
Carl CarterWednesday
April 02, 2008

Internal squabbling has put half a million dollars for the Métis Nation of Alberta up in the air.A conference call was to be held on March 27 to ratify a 2007-08 framework agreement between the MNA and the Government of Alberta, but that call was cancelled because seven of 14 member MNA provincial council refused to take part.

“Since April 2007 these same seven members have attempted to obstruct the normal business functions of the MNA,” said Audrey Poitras, president of the MNA. “All efforts to have the council approve the agreement have failed.”

Over $500,000 in funding for the MNA head office is at stake, and while the seven-year framework agreement was signed this past year, both the ministries of justice and aboriginal relations believe the MNA provincial council must ratify the agreement.

'This was our last chance to have the framework agreement ratified,” said Poitras. “All members of the provincial council were notified five days before the meeting that there would be a conference call to review the ratification of the framework.”

Karen Collins, MNA president for Region 2 that includes Lloydminster, is confident individual agreements can be reached so that each region has funds, but the services provided from the head office will certainly take a hit.

“The provincial government has indeed done agreements directly with each of the regions,” said Collins, adding that those agreements ran out on March 31, but arrangements are being made to come up with new agreements.

“We’re confident that we can go through the necessary process and meet the criteria for funding,” said Collins. “As a nation, we still have issues that have to be dealt with to ensure operating fund dollars are extended to our head office.

'The MNA received a letter – dated March 20 – from Gene Zwozdesky, Alberta’s minister of aboriginal relations, stating that the funding was put back into the general revenue fund at the end of March.“However … I have instructed department officials to continue working with the six (MNA) regions to ensure that the individual funding agreements for the 2007-08 period are expedited and paid out by my ministry directly to each zone,” added Zwozdesky.

Since the failed conference call, Poitras has pleaded with the ministry of aboriginal relations to reconsider the need to ratify the agreement.“The benefits of the Metis community generally should not be lost because a few people want to play politics,” said Poitras. “We must find a way to avoid having seven people sabotage funding the province has agreed to make available to the Métis people living in Alberta.”

Collins is mainly concerned with the seven dissenting members, and the growth that could have been made if they were more cooperative.“It has stunted the development and the progress that we could have made since April 1 of last year,” said Collins. “The people in Region 2 are very anxious for everything to get back on track.”