Liard First Nation members to hold non-confidence vote against chief

Liard First Nation in the Yukon will soon vote on a non-confidence motion that, if successful, could see Chief Stephen Charlie step down from his role.

The announcement comes after months of tensions within the First Nation. 

On Oct. 21, four councillors and the First Nation's deputy chief signed a public letter saying they had lost confidence in Charlie's leadership. The letter alleged inaction on critical issues, inability to collaborate with council, workplace harassment and repeated ethics violations. 

Charlie did not respond to a request for comment from CBC, nor did he publicly respond to the letter. 

The same month, he dismissed Martina Volfová, the director of the First Nation's language department. 

Eight Liard First Nation members signed a statement of concern about that decision, writing: "[Volfová's] dismissal poses a serious threat to the progress made in safeguarding our language."

Several of Volfová's colleagues in the language department, Emeral Poppe and Diana Lee Jimmy, decided to take another step and began organizing around the concerns building in the community. The group that formed is called Dene Ā́' Nezen. 

"It was an elder whose words I really took to heart," said Jimmy. "She phoned us from the hospital and basically yelled at us when our director got her letter. Like, 'You kids gotta do something. I'm getting old now so you gotta stand up.'" 

Stephen Charlie was first elected in 2020 and re-elected in 2023. Jimmy says she voted for him. 

Poppe said there hasn't been an annual report since Charlie was elected a year and a half ago, and there hasn't been an annual general meeting since 2022.

"There's no transparency, we don't know what's going on, what decisions are being made on our behalf," she said. "Nothing has been made very clear to us. In a previous meeting, they couldn't quite provide us with financials, only draft documents. It's concerning."

They began holding meetings and petitioning. Ultimately, the discussions have culminated in the upcoming meeting, which could result in a byelection. 

The aims of Dene Ā́' Nezen go beyond Charlie. 

"It's an ongoing issue," said Jimmy. "I'm sure you're familiar with past chiefs and financial troubles we've been in before. [Liard First Nation] has had poor leadership who feels they can do what they want and not answer to membership.

"And that's a big part of why we organized — to bring integrity to our leadership again." 

Dene Ā́' Nezen also wants to see a constitution put in place and its election code updated. 

Poppe said she and Jimmy are part of the first generation of Liard First Nation members who haven't attended residential school. She spoke about the legal limitations to their government that came with the Indian Act and the ongoing impacts of intergenerational trauma. 

"So that's connected to dysfunction, to not being able to work together," she said. "I still like to think that a lot of the people who tried [to lead] were still good people, they were just maybe not in the best situations … and looking out for themselves and their own family members … for survival.

"And that makes sense. But we can't continue functioning in this way. We have to do better."

Poppe said she wants to see the First Nation become successful for the betterment of future generations. 

Both Jimmy and Poppe said standing up to Charlie has been difficult, but that they've received support from the community. 

"People have been encouraging us a lot," said Jimmy. "We got a lot of feedback that what we're doing is right and that it's about time." 

Deputy chief Harlan Schilling is one of them. He hopes the vote will bring some clarity. 

"I've been completely left in the dark, along with the other councillors, on all of the actions and decision-making regarding our nation," he said. "We'd like a financial update as we understand there are quite a few layoffs happening, right before the holidays … just hoping to finally get answers.

"And I'm extremely proud of these young women." 

The vote will take place on Dec. 17. If the motion receives more then 50 per cent support, Charlie will vacate his position, Schilling said.