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Commentary
September 2, 2005 Power Corporation consultation breaks all the rules"Consultation is disrespectful to the needs and lifestyle of Nunavummiut" JIM DEYELL For the second time in less than a year, the Nunavut Power Corporation is asking for a rate increase. This time the increase is planned to take effect April 1, 2006 and totals $7.9 million. If approved, the current rate increase request will basically double that recently imposed on customers, of $8.4 million, on April 1, 2005. Nunavummiut only had until Aug. 31 to provide their comments on this current requested rate increase. A third increase request is expected later this year to deal with rises in the price of fuel. It is difficult for Nunavut Power's commercial customers to understand why a consultation program about a rate increase to be effective April 1, 2006 is occurring during the summer months of 2005. There are at least three key consultation rules that must be met if the exercise is to be meaningful. The first is that good information must be provided to the public regarding the matter on which they are being consulted; the second is that the consultation must be timely in relation to the matter; and the third is that the consultation process should be accessible to all potentially affected persons and responsive to their needs. In this case all three rules have been ignored. The current application provides none of the detail that the company was required to produce as a result of the last hearing. Before a next rate increase was to be granted, the Government of Nunavut was required to provide the results of a major study about how to streamline the utility. The study has not yet been started, and the results are now not expected until December. Also, without knowing the cost of the expected fuel increase, it is also not possible to assess the overall impact of the current proposed rate increases on Nunavut. In short, there is little or no information about either the need for the increase or the combined impact of the rate changes on customers. The current consultation process is not timely. The current rate increase request, if approved, will not take effect for seven months. During that time Nunavut Power was supposed to work to lower its costs, become an efficient and well-run utility, and to put in place a financial management plan. The company has not indicated that any of this has been done. It is not clear how much money will be saved by having Nunavut Power become efficient and well-run, but surely the savings from that exercise should be reflected when setting rates. If the current proposal is approved, today's inefficient level of costs will be entrenched in a rate increase that might otherwise not have been needed, and there will be no incentive for the utility to improve. Finally, and perhaps most important, the current consultation is disrespectful to the needs and lifestyle of Nunavummiut. The short summer months are no time to expect people to come off the land or interrupt holidays to participate in hearings or to write submissions. The issue of the rate increase cannot even be debated by our elected officials as many of them are also engaged in their summer pursuits. In short, the customers of Nunavut Power will have every right to be surprised and offended when they turn their attention to these matters. By that point, unless a more reasonable and logical approach is taken, the rate increase decision will presumably be a fait accompli. It is time for Mr. Picco to put a stop to this inappropriate and unreasonable consultation exercise and reject the request. If Nunavut Power still sees a need for higher rates for April 2006 after their streamlining exercise, then they can plan for proper and informative consultation program this winter. Jim Deyell is regional manager of public affairs for the North West Company,
which operates in 21 communities in Nunavut, and is a member of the Iqaluit
Chamber of Commerce. September 2, 2005 CBC Iqaluit's first Inuktitut announcer passes awayMary Kikoak, a westerner, touched many lives in the Eastern Arctic ANN MEEKITJUK HANSON
I remember Mary Kikoak, who passed away Aug. 8. She was the first Inuit CBC announcer here in Iqaluit in the early 1960s. The CBC radio station was at T-1, where the Illuvut building is now. People were very excited and amazed that our language was being used on the radio. Mary would announce each song she was going to play, singers like Johnny Cash, Hank Snow, Buddy Holly, Elvis Presley, Ricky Nelson and so on. Of course, the names of the singers were all in English, then she would say that was so-and-so singing, all in Inuktitut. One day there were some interviews and storytellers on the radio. I am sure there was not a person outside! Mary must have interviewed one of my great-aunts, Jean Ooa. Great-aunt Ooa was quite a character, willing to try new things. She smoked a pipe because she used to say "cigarettes can kill you." There was another station that broadcast from Upper Base, the American station. It too, played a lot of country-and-western and rock 'n' roll music. I was listening to the American station when my uncle Annugaq finally remembered that great-aunt Ooa was going to be on the CBC radio. He was upset that I had the other station on and that he missed the Inuktitut stories told by his aunt. He had to go to Shiutiapik's and ask them what Ooaraluk (great Ooa) had talked about! I don't know why he didn't directly go to Ooa's because she lived right next door. As young people, we greatly admired Mary Kikoak for her ability as an announcer. I remember helping her with the 45's. For the young people, 45's were small records, bigger than today's CD's, but with only one song on each side. They were called 45's because that was the speed they had to be played on the record player. We were hanging around outside T-1 one day and Mary came out and said she needed someone to help her with the show, because people were calling in to request songs. I volunteered quickly and willingly. I had to look for songs that people wanted to hear and then file them away after Mary played them. Mary told me to be quiet as possible. I had so much fun helping Mary and will never forget it! Mary was very friendly and always had time to talk with people. She always had nice parkas beautifully decorated with embroidery, which she made herself. She had such confidence and happiness around her. I learned much later that she was from a far away land, a land we never heard of before, "ualiniq," the "western part." She was from Gjoa Haven. Her husband Eddie had come here to Iqaluit to work and Mary had followed him. Mary and Eddie made many friends here, and were very respected and admired. They always welcomed and helped people as I remember. Mary Kikoak pioneered Inuit programming in those early CBC days. She got to interview elders and got stories that no had heard before on the radio. I am grateful for Mary because many of us have followed her trail and saved a huge chunk of the Inuit way of life: history, legends, the language, humour, weather-predicting, hunting stories, food, and all things pertaining to Inuit world. Mary led the way in those early years. She made a huge contribution and we mustn't forget that. Her spunk and curiosity helped us to get interested in our own culture and language, even though she spoke a different dialect than us. A few of us here in Iqaluit have good memories of Mary. The last time I saw her was in the Yellowknife airport several years ago. When she saw me, she came right away and asked about all her friends in the Eastern Arctic. It was very good to see her. Mary might not have realized that she helped to get the Inuktitut programs going in a big way and that many people have continued what she started. We are grateful.
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