Grand Chief of the Nishnawbe Aski Nation, Derek Fox after a Toronto meeting on March 9.Cole Burston/The Globe and Mail
The Grand Chief of the Nishnawbe Aski Nation, Northern Ontario’s largest Indigenous political organization, was removed from office Thursday after its chiefs-in-assembly reviewed a report into misconduct allegations against him.
“After review of the investigation report, and hearing from Derek Fox, NAN chiefs-in-assembly accepted the report and directed that Derek Fox is to be removed from the position of grand chief,” NAN said in a statement.
One of the chiefs present said 34 out of 36 chiefs at the review voted to terminate the grand chief, and that Mr. Fox failed to show any remorse or apologize. The Globe and Mail is not naming the chief because they were not authorized to discuss internal deliberations.
Mr. Fox’s lawyer did not return a request for comment.
Mr. Fox was suspended at the end of February in a move by the deputy grand chiefs for allegedly violating the organization’s code of conduct.
The NAN chiefs later supported that suspension, which Mr. Fox refused to accept, stating that he was still grand chief.
Mr. Fox came under fire last December when he was called out for allegations of abusive behaviour toward Indigenous women by another chief at the Assembly of First Nations chiefs meeting in Ottawa. That prompted managerial staff at NAN to write a letter to the organization’s human-resources department and health and safety committee requesting support for any staff who might have been triggered by the calling-out incident.
In a heated 23-minute secret audio recording of a meeting with the former grand chief and his staff, he demanded that the staff member who wrote the letter be fired because she triggered him.
Mr. Fox also filed a defamation lawsuit against Chief Jeffrey Copenace of Onigaming First Nation, not affiliated with NAN, for his comments at the AFN assembly last winter.
Nishnawbe Aski Nation is a political organization representing 49 First Nations in Northern Ontario, handling multimillion-dollar files for health transformation and other projects meant to improve the quality of lives and protect inherent rights of Indigenous people living in the remote North.
A by-election for a new grand chief will take place in 30 days.
FREDERICTON – A look at David Coon, leader of the Green Party of New Brunswick:
Born: Oct. 28, 1956.
Early years: Born in Toronto and raised in Montreal, he spent about three decades as an environmental advocate.
Education: A trained biologist, he graduated with a bachelor of science from McGill University in Montreal in 1978.
Family: He and his wife Janice Harvey have two daughters, Caroline and Laura.
Before politics: Worked as an environmental educator, organizer, activist and manager for 33 years, mainly with the Conservation Council of New Brunswick.
Politics: Joined the Green Party of Canada in May 2006 and was elected leader of the New Brunswick Green Party in September 2012. Won a seat in the legislature in 2014 — a first for the province’s Greens.
Quote: “It was despicable. He’s clearly decided to take the low road in this campaign, to adopt some Trump-lite fearmongering.” — David Coon on Sept. 12, 2024, reacting to Blaine Higgs’s claim that the federal government had decided to send 4,600 asylum seekers to New Brunswick.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
FREDERICTON – A look at Blaine Higgs, leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick.
Born: March 1, 1954.
Early years: The son of a customs officer, he grew up in Forest City, N.B., near the Canada-U.S. border.
Education: Graduated from the University of New Brunswick with a degree in mechanical engineering in 1977.
Family: Married his high-school sweetheart, Marcia, and settled in Saint John, N.B., where they had four daughters: Lindsey, Laura, Sarah and Rachel.
Before politics: Hired by Irving Oil a week after he graduated from university and was eventually promoted to director of distribution. Worked for 33 years at the company.
Politics: Elected to the legislature in 2010 and later served as finance minister under former Progressive Conservative Premier David Alward. Elected Tory leader in 2016 and has been premier since 2018.
Quote: “I’ve always felt parents should play the main role in raising children. No one is denying gender diversity is real. But we need to figure out how to manage it.” — Blaine Higgs in a year-end interview in 2023, explaining changes to school policies about gender identity.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
OTTAWA – The pressing issues of climate change and food security join more familiar ones like violent extremism and espionage on a new list of Canada’s intelligence priorities.
The federal government says publishing the list of priorities for the first time is an important step toward greater transparency.
The government revises the priorities every two years, based on recommendations from the national security adviser and the intelligence community.
Once the priorities are reviewed and approved by the federal cabinet, key ministers issue directives to federal agencies that produce intelligence.
Among the priorities are the security of global health, food, water and biodiversity, as well as the issues of climate change and global sustainability.
The new list also includes foreign interference and malign influence, cyberthreats, infrastructure security, Arctic sovereignty, border integrity and transnational organized crime.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
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