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“Progress and Prosperity Team” Refuses to Share Community Funds In my October, 2003 issue of Voices, I had reported that the “Progress and Prosperity Team” consisted of the current Chief, six council members collecting two or more annual salaries, and administrators collecting a salary in the range of $70,000.00 - $115,826. The team also includes senior managers and executives of the infamous Tobique Economic and Development Corporation. This team has proven to be a heavy financial burden for Tobique due to the 1.1 million dollar price-tag placed on our community funds. I believe that community funds should benefit everyone in Tobique and that all additional resources such as casino funds, forest royalties, and tax rebates should be distributed equally among community members. An alternative to equal distribution of additional resources would be to use the funds for community programs, projects and initiatives designed to assist our Elders, youth, and those experiencing emergency situations. Whatever option is taken should be based on consultations with the local population. In addition to funds flowing into Tobique for various programs, services and initiatives, our community also receives additional funds from the casino operations, forest royalties, and gas/cigarette sales rebate. Profits from “Band businesses” would have been another source of funds for the community but TEDCo. has failed to make our businesses profitable. In fact, TEDCo. has drained our financial resources not only from the community but also from individual loggers, fishermen, and entrepreneurs. For example, fees charged to loggers by TEDCo. has decreased the “take-home pay” for most members involved in the forest industry. The majority of our members agree that profits from the casino should be disbursed in accordance with the wishes of all shareholders i.e. community members of Tobique. They also agree that forest royalties and gas/cigarette sales rebates should also benefit all members of Tobique. First, we need to know the amounts received for each of these items for the past two years. We have not received any information from the administration that reveals revenues and expenditures for these items. I would remind the people that the “Progress and Prosperity Team” has a legal and political obligation to share this information with the community. I would suggest to the “Progress and Prosperity Team” that they not only provide financial information but also share the additional resources with all community members. I have contacted a sample of First Nations in the past few months and inquired about forest royalties, rebates and profits from “band-owned businesses”. The following information was provided regarding these items:
Why is it that the “Progress and Prosperity Team” and its administration refuse to share the funds from our casino operations, forest royalties and rebates similar to the approaches adopted by Kingsclear, St. Mary’s, Millbrook, and Membertou? We know that the casino generates approximately 14 million annually. What are the net profits after expenditures? Why are the net profits not shared with all community members? Why are the managers of the casino refusing to provide detailed financial information to the people of Tobique? In my review of the 2002-2003 Annual Report published by the Department of Natural Resources, I have discovered that the total amount of forest royalties paid to Tobique for the fiscal year 2002-2003 was $378,872.57. The majority of our members would like to know what happened to these funds. Were they used to subsidize the high salaries of the “Progress and Prosperity Team” and their family members or were they used to finance the deficit of the administration? Why were these funds not distributed equally among community members similar to the Kingsclear First Nation approach? The amount Tobique receives for gas and cigarette sales rebate is a mystery indeed. No one seems to know except two or three individuals within the band administration. Are the rebates more or less than that of St. Mary’s? My contacts at St. Mary’s First Nation have informed me that for fiscal year 2002 – 2003, the band received a rebate of approximately 2.3 million. These included gas, tobacco, and diesel excise tax rebates. If St. Mary’s First Nation is entitled to such a high amount of rebate from the province, I wonder what Tobique received for the same period. Our population is almost twice the size of St. Mary’s and I would therefore suspect that Tobique is receiving significantly more than the 2.3 million transferred to St. Mary’s First Nation. Whatever the amount of the rebate, community members need to be informed on actual revenues and expenditures of the rebates for the past two years. People become suspicious if financial information is not provided for review by community members! |