One of Prime Minister Paul Martin's key commitments to Canada's aboriginals is the resurrection of a native self-government think-tank that had operated in Manitoba before its funding was cut while he was finance minister. The Independent Centre for First Nations Government not only has a similar name to the First Nations Governance Institute, which was located on Long Plain reserve near Portage la Prairie, but also roughly the same $5-million budget. Unfortunately for Long Plain, there is no sign that it will be a part of Martin's governance promise that appears destined to land in Vancouver. "He is reannouncing a previous announcement for a previous project which was cut," said Tory MP Brian Pallister (Portage-Lisgar). NDP aboriginal affairs critic Pat Martin said not only is the Independent Centre for First Nations Government an old idea, it also comes with old money. Martin is also angry the Liberals are putting it into British Columbia as part of what he believes is a bid to woo voters there. "This means B.C.'s gain is Manitoba's loss," said Martin (Winnipeg Centre). In November 2001 --less than a year after it opened -- the $5-million Long Plain think-tank on self-government was forced to close after the federal government stopped funding it. "The status of Long Plain is that it is not happening and it was a lot of money expended to build it but it didn't happen," said Louis Harper of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, who was a board member of the Long Plain centre. The institute was established to help First Nations make the transition to self-government. Ottawa pledged $5 million to get it going, with the idea that it would be self-sustaining after several years. It was also one of the recommendations of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples report in 1996. The federal government's 1997 Gathering Strength Strategy envisioned a centre to help strengthen First Nations governance. At the time, then-Indian affairs minister Bob Nault defended the move that shut down the Long Plain centre by saying it did not mesh with his own goal for good governance practices. "We have a scarce amount of resources and we were putting money into something that is a think-tank -- think-tanks for what?" Nault told the Free Press. "We have been think-tanking it here for a long time and I am not prepared to spend any more resources without something being connected to an end result." But three years later, Paul Martin is eager to trumpet his version of the think tank. "This organization will help to foster best practices in improving accountability and transparency while developing principles of self-government," Martin told a summit with native leaders recently. Indian Affairs spokeswoman Diane Laursen didn't deny the similarities between the Long Plain centre and the one Martin has now promised. "It was a good idea then and it is a good idea now," she said. Laursen said the new centre, unlike the Long Plain version, will be completely designed and run by First Nations. "This is First Nations-led and national in scope and will be working with First Nations communities to decide what they need to be working on for good governance," she said. Members of the Long Plain First Nation Band could not be reached for comment.
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