Colville Lake, N.W.T. hopes for self-government within 4 years
Chief Wilbert Kochon says he hopes to submit agreement-in-principle within the year
The chief of Colville Lake, N.W.T. has set an ambitious target for finalizing his community's self-government agreement — within the next four years.
Chief Wilbert Kochon is looking to have his community follow in the footsteps of Deline, which became the first N.W.T. community to have a community self-government agreement become law last year.
The expedited timeline was pushed by the community, said Kochon, who noted that the new Liberal government appears willing to work at a faster pace than the previous government.
"Before, there was always excuses," said Kochon. "Like, 'we have to postpone' or 'we can't make it this time.' It's always... they want to push it back, push it more back, and slow you down.
"As soon as the new government came in, the attitude sure changed. It turned around."
Kochon said he's hoping to submit an agreement-in-principle in the next year, then sign a final agreement with both the federal and territorial governments three years after that.