Over a third of Skin Tyee First Nation (STFN) members are demanding their chief to resign.

Skin Tyee members Candy Michaluk and Ryan Tom started circulating a petition last July demanding to remove Chief Rene Skin from office. Skin has been in power for approximately five years.

鈥淭he petition started because when he was elected he promised that there would be financial transparency and accountability,鈥� said Michaluk. 鈥淭he first couple of years he was doing his job, and after two years it started slipping, the communications started falling off between chief and council and band members; we requested information on their wages and they refused to give it to us鈥� they said it was confidential.鈥�

鈥淔or our small band, they are earning quite a bit of money,鈥� she added. 鈥淏ut we just want them to have financial transparency and be accountable, and they are not.鈥�

According to documents available through Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, Chief Skin was paid $128,470 in remuneration and $13,261 in travel-related expenses in the 12 months ended March 31, 2017, bringing his total income to $141,731.

Michaluk says the concerns are not just about financial transparency.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not just the wages, it鈥檚 also the Election Code. Part of our Election Code says that the chief has to live on reserve, and he鈥檚 rarely on the reserve鈥� he鈥檚 only seen around during meetings. He doesn鈥檛 live there, and chief and council aren鈥檛 willing to enforce that rule.鈥�

According to STFN鈥檚 Election Code, the chief has to live within 50 km of the band office.

A total of 61 signatures - over a third of the 165 registered STFN members - have signed the petition, which says that 鈥渕embers no longer have confidence in his leadership and deem him unfit to represent the nation as chief.鈥�

鈥淲e request an immediate review of his adherence to the STFN Election Code, the STFN Code of Ethics, and the Oath of Office of the Chief,鈥� states the petition.

Michaluk and Tom said the petition was given to council last fall, but that no meaningful action has been taken since then.

According to the federal government, the STFN council is not elected under the election provisions of the Indian Act, but rather under its own community election rules. Therefore the process to remove an elected official is determined entirely by STFN and the rules it has set out. The federal government has no role to play.

鈥淲e鈥檙e at a loss right now, it鈥檚 very frustrating,鈥� said Michaluk. 鈥淲e鈥檝e presented this petition and they [council] still won鈥檛 follow through. Our election code is so ancient鈥� it doesn鈥檛 even have that we can use a petition to get him out.鈥�

鈥淲e鈥檝e been finding it hard to get some positive change,鈥� she added.

Elders express concerns

Hereditary Chief Mable Jack, junior elder Richard Skin and elder Angeline Crocker have recently reached out to Lakes District 亚洲天堂 to express their concerns.

The elders say they felt disrespected when they were asked by Chief Skin to leave a council meeting in late January 2018 after expressing some of their concerns. The elders say that although an apology from the chief would be welcomed, it would not be enough.

鈥淲e want to see him gone,鈥� said Jack.

No response from Chief Skin

Lakes District 亚洲天堂 attempted to contact Chief Skin several times - via email, phone and through the band鈥檚 general manager -, giving him approximately 10 days to respond. However, the chief could not be reached by press time.

Skin Tyee鈥檚 next general election will be held in February 2019.