Whether one recognizes it or not, the average hard-working person in this country owes a huge debt of gratitude to the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.
That organization regularly points out instances of governments, at all three levels, wasting our tax dollars and digging this country further into debt.
Consider, for instance, the CTF’s recent revelation that councillors at the Peguis First Nation in Manitoba are being paid more than the premier of that province.
While they preside over a community of just 7,000 people, Peguis band councillors were paid between $206,000 and $319,000 last year. However, after much criticism, they recently drafted a resolution that would cap their pay at $170,000 for the chief and $140,000 for councillors. But remember, their pay is tax free.
As the CTF has noted on its website (taxpayer.com), a Canadian paying income tax would need to gross $439,745 to pocket the $251,747 that one Peguis councillor collected tax free last year.
The fact that the CTF learned of the high councillor salaries being paid at Peguis First Nation was a bit of a fluke.
“It shouldn’t take a brown envelope dropped off at a CTF office to make these huge salary figures public,” says Colin Craig, prairie director for the CTF.
“The salaries for all band council members nationwide should be posted on the federal government’s website.”
The CTF got lucky in being leaked the salary figures, but it appears there’s virtually no way for the organization or the average taxpayer to find out what salaries are being paid to councillors at other Indian bands in Canada.
The average Canadian can find out relatively easily how much the mayor of Red Deer or prime minister of Canada earns, but there’s next to no accountability for spending on aboriginals. That’s even the case for money that is supplied by the federal government.
“Stories like (the fiasco at the Peguis First Nation) are never going to go away unless Canadians start calling their MPs,” explains Craig. “Billions of dollars are transferred to reserves each year; unfortunately, we often hear that the dollars aren’t reaching those that need them.”
Regrettably, past Liberal and Conservative federal governments have shown no appetite for investigating spending on Canada’s reserves.
No doubt, they know that if they ask too many questions, they risk being labelled racists. So, politically, it’s easier to keep writing cheques and turn a blind eye when people living on some reserves can’t even get such basics as safe drinking water while the fat cats at the top get rich.
It’s a sad situation, made all the more ridiculous when you consider that the money used to pay the Peguis councillors their exorbitant salaries could be used for much better purposes, such as funding education, health care and housing on reserves.
But guess who is in charge of overseeing such matters?
You guessed it: the band councillors setting their own salaries.
Lee Giles is an Advocate editor.