Constitutional Reform should be of the utmost importance among the people and the elected officials. Although, I don’t think the new council has been in office long enough to get the blame for not starting the constitutional reform yet. Just like every other job, there is a learning curve. Not only that, they took office with crippling debt, personnel issues, and I honestly believe they are trying their best. In a job of that magnitude, you are subject to criticism on every decision you make. At the end of the day all that matters is what is best for the Blackfeet people. Now let’s take a look at the history of Constitutional Reform. It started with an overwhelming majority of the people supporting the 2008 referendum for Separation of Powers. In order to separate the power of the “almighty” council, THE PEOPLE must begin to work on restructuring the constitution. No matter what group you belong to, that is the time to voice your opinions. Constitutional Reform was halted in 2011 by a majority of the council: Willie Sharp, Paul McEvers, Jay Wells, Jay St.Goddard, and Henry Butterfly. I believe it was halted because it was approximately 80% finished, also meaning that some of the sitting council’s terms would get cut short due to the staggered terms and the fact that the 2012 election cycle could’ve been the year the Blackfeet voted to approve the newly written Blackfeet Constitution. I believe this because 4 of the 5 that voted to end Constitutional Reform were elected in 2010 and weren’t up for re-election until 2014, thus if the new constitution had been approved by the people in 2012 via secretarial election, their terms in office would’ve only been 2 years instead of 4. I’m not trying to bash these men for their political stance on the issue of constitutional reform, but I completely disagree with that stance. Furthermore, the current sitting council has all been elected by the people, and are accountable to the people. We want transparency. Take the vote BTBC! We want to know where you stand on Constitutional Reform now that you have the power to do something about it. In the midst of layoffs, pay cuts, and simply being a time that we want the dust to settle, a leap in the right direction is to vote in favor of constitutional reform, assemble a committee of volunteers to coordinate meetings, provide a meeting place for ALL the people, and let the people get back to work finishing the constitution. We don’t need to repeat things over and over expecting a different result, only to be slapped in the face with the same things. I believe that is the definition of insanity. I’ll leave you all with this question, “will this be the BTBC to put the political futures on hold in order to let the Blackfeet People finish, vote on, and implement the new constitution even if their terms are cut short?” I sure hope so!
Posted on: Sat, 13 Sep 2014 17:16:58 +0000
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