We at the Nation didn’t expect to become a controversial topic during the Cree Health Board election. In our last issue, we published interviews with two candidates, the current chair Bertie Wapachee and challenger George L. Diamond.
What is controversial is that there were three other candidates in the November 12 election, the winner of which we can’t tell you because we go to press on November 8. The same problem led to our seeming neglect of Jeannie Pelletier, Sherry Ann Spencer and Emma Virginia Wabano. We were unaware of their candidacies until the issue had been put to bed the very same day the final list of candidates was released October 23.
But it happened and some people were quick to jump on the bandwagon to make the Nation a scapegoat because it sounds and feels unfair. We did what we could with the information we had under the constraints of our publishing schedule.
So, we contacted the two candidates we knew were running for interviews in order to present some information for voters to consider in the last issue our readers will see before the election. None of the other three candidates, nor Returning Officer John Henry Wapachee, contacted us about other entrants in the race.
We are sorry that they were not interviewed but cannot take the blame for that. If any of the candidates had contacted us, we certainly would have interviewed them as well. The purpose of the Nation is to provide the Cree with as much information as we can on a given topic. It was unfortunate that in this case that did not happen.
Part of that reason came out when one candidate relayed information implying there was a bylaw prohibiting campaigning before the official nomination list is released to the public. John Henry Wapachee verified that there is no such bylaw but said he had asked the candidates to refrain from campaigning nonetheless. He felt that both George Diamond and Bertie Wapachee should not have given interviews even though the issue containing the election article didn’t arrive in the communities until after the final list was released.
You may have noticed that we are using the full names of Bertie and John Henry Wapachee. This is because they are brothers, and we do not want them to be confused with each other. But this leads to one of the flaws in the election process. Having one candidate’s brother run the election is generally seen as a conflict of interest. To be sure, John Henry Wapachee is seen as a fair and honest person, but questions will still be raised.
The question remains, however. Why were candidates discouraged from campaigning before the official list? To deny that simply gives an unfair advantage to the incumbent or current chair. Wouldn’t that person have been in the news beforehand simply as a result of his or her position?
Time is another flaw in campaigning. This is not simply a person running in a single community as a chief or councillor. There are members of 11 Cree communities (counting MoCreebec) who vote in this election – as well as those living in the south. It is physically impossible for the candidates to reach many Cree in person. The only one who can do that is the current Chair in the course of their duties, which is another advantage over challengers.
The campaign period should be extended to allow time for all candidates to reach voters in every community. Then we could all do our jobs to the best abilities we have. This is something that should be addressed to ensure the election process is fair to all.