Anger Over Extravagant SIGA Expenses
Anger has been growing amongst First Nation chiefs in Canada regarding the extravagant expenses chalked up by the board of the Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority (SIGA) which earns millions through gambling.
Documents detailing the spending of hundreds of thousands of dollars by the SIGA board were seen by the chiefs, prompting anger and frustration. Over $78,000 was reportedly spent in July alone by the Canadian gaming group.
"They're supposed to make decisions for us, not make all this money," said frustrated First Nation Saulteaux Chief, Velma Knight. "They're just thinking about their own interests. They've started to get greedy."
There have been continuing efforts to get certain politicians off the SIGA board due to these claims and other complaints.
The board chair, Kirk Goodtrack, tried to make changes to the system earlier this year, until he was 'ambushed' in a meeting on July 6th where he discovered that his friends had aligned against him.
A motion of non-confidence, without any forewarning, was issued against Goodtrack and was passed with eight votes in favor. There were two abstentions by Carole Byrant and Delbert Wapass, and only the former Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations chief, Perry Bellegarde, opposed the motion.
When details of the extravagant expenditure got out, many of the chiefs said that it was no wonder that the board wanted to get rid of Goodtrack, who stood in their way of such lavish spending..
According to some of the documents, some of the SIGA board members claimed over $100,000 last year, even though half of them already earn salaries as chiefs.
Goodtrack made it clear that he would not accept anything more than $25,000 a year. He is a member of the Wood Mountain First Nation and a lawyer.
SIGA Forced to Reinstate Goodtrack
After he was so dramatically ousted from his role as chair of the Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority, Goodtrack obtained a legal opinion which said that there was no basis for the non-confidence motions. He learned that only the province's chiefs could choose to have him removed at a scheduled assembly.
After the SIGA board refused to reinstate him, Goodtrack took the board to court, which ordered his reinstatement.
The board continues to argue that there are conflicts of interest with Goodtrack and they shouldn't be forced to reinstate him.
Goodtrack said that he was "very pleased with the result."
"I want to continue my work at SIGA, cutting costs at the SIGA board, looking at improving efficiencies in SIGA operations," he said.
As such, it was announced that an FSIN meeting with SIGA at the end of this month will including the newly-instated chair, Kirk Goodtrack.
