Two First Nations request forensic audit of Indigenous student funding
February 3, 2021
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Two northern First Nation chiefs have requested a forensic audit of 20-years worth of funding for Indigenous students in the Prince George School District.
“Looking at how their system worked, we were following the dollars and some things just didn’t seem to make sense,” said Lheidli T’enneh Nation Chief Clay Pountney. “McLeod Lake said maybe we should look at a forensic audit, and we said, we support you in that, we think that’d be a good idea.”
McLeod Lake Indian Band and Lheidli T’enneh Nation joined together to request a forensic audit of all targeted Indigenous education and Local Education Agreement (LEA) funding dispersed by SD57.
After much consideration, we have abandoned our decision to relocate north of Prince George and are now returning to our original site in the BCR Industrial Park, James wrote in a statement on Tuesday.
The CEO says a B.C. Court of Appeal s ruling in May on First Nations territorial boundaries means the company would have to do the extra work of negotiating with more Indigenous communities other than McLeod Lake Indian Band in order to have the facility built outside of Prince George.
He also wrote that many Prince George residents want the petrochemical facility to be built in town to offer job opportunities.