New AFN administration setting up shop

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While newly-elected Assembly of First Nations Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come travels across the country and beyond in the early days of his mandate, a six-member transition team is at work in Ottawa re-vamping the structure of the national First Nations political organization.

In his first month in office, Coon Come made stops in Alberta, Saskatchewan, the Northwest Territories, British Columbia and Atlantic Canada. He spoke to the United Nations permanent forum in New York.

Meanwhile, AFN interim chief executive officer Bill Namagoose and his transition team colleagues are taking the organization apart and putting it back together.

Namagoose, a well respected administrator on loan from the Grand Council of the Crees who was appointed as the AFN's interim CEO the evening Coon Come was elected, told Windspeaker on Aug. 30 that he has been instructed to simplify the structure of the organization and work is progressing.

"We need to make it more efficient," he said. "We've got to get the number of directors reporting to the CEO down to nine. We can't have 18 or 19 directors. It's too many."

He added that that doesn't necessarily mean mass layoffs but there will be a significant re-structuring. He couldn't say when the process will be completed but he pointed out that a search is on for a permanent CEO because he plans to finish the task given to him by the national chief and then return home as soon as he can.

"I've told the Crees that I'm staying with the Crees," Namagoose said. "I'm in two canoes now with one foot in each canoe and it's pretty difficult."

Other members of the transition team include: Richard Powless of Ontario, a former employee of the National Association of Friendship Centres and more recently a private consultant; Ken Thomas, founding president of Aboriginal Business Canada in Saskatchewan; Sheila Muskwa, the former executive assistant to Blaine Favel when he was grand chief of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations whose talents as a pollster and organizer are well known; former national chief Ovide Mercredi, and Cara Currie, who is employed by Coon Come (not the AFN) as a personal political attache.

Currie told Windspeaker that the Coon Come team was able to get through the campaign without having to make deals for support and therefore was free to follow its own agenda without distraction.

"There's been no promises made, period," Currie said. "We ran a solid campaign and we worked very hard and we did it with integrity and we didn't have to make deals and promises and it can be done. We need to restore credibility to these kinds of elections. The people want standards, they want values, they want real leaders. We deserve it.

"We were elected Wednesday and assumed office that night. A CEO was appointed and Friday Matthew met with the staff," she said. "Matthew told them, 'You do not work for Matthew Coon Come, you work for the people and I had better not hear you ever say anything else.'"

Programs established and deals made by the previous administration are being examined.

"Well, if you listened to Matthew during the campaign, he said the money has to go to the people and he re-affirmed that with the directors of AFN. So everything is under review," Currie said.

Coon Come had what his staff describe as a very good meeting with Indian Affairs Minister Robert Nault in Fort Resolution, N.W.T. during the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Treaty 8 adhesion in late July.

"It was supposed to be just for 10 or 15 minutes but they shoved everybody out and met for an hour and the only reason they stopped meeting was because the celebrations were starting and they were the headliners," Currie said.

In a move that veteran AFN watchers found very surprising, the prime minister called Coon Come shortly after his election. Currie said Jean Chretien congratulated the new national chief and said he looked forward to working with him. Chretien has kept his distance from Indian Affirs for most, if not all, of his time as prime minister, leaving it to the minister to comment on issues on that front.

Although Coon Come is seen as a hardliner on the basic issues that have caused friction between First Nations and Ottawa, sources in the capital city say he is seen in a friendly light by the Liberal establishment because of his success in taking on Quebec separatists during his time as grand chief of the Grand Council of the James Bay Crees.