The Ojibwe News (Bemidji, Minnesota), 1990-06-06

              IRS places levy on Bois Forte Reservation Accounts
By Mark Boswell
Editor
"The situation is critical," said
Gordon Adams Jr., Executive
Director of the Bois Forte
Reservation in Northern Minnesota.
Adams was referrring to the Internal
Revenue Service's drastic measure
to place a levy on all Reservation
Business Committee accounts,
effectively freezing the RBC's
handling of financial affairs.
Adams, who  attempted  a
"temporary emergency lay-off of
employees recently to forestall the Virginia, of a levy placed on all
failing RBC's handing of tribal accounts. The levy is the direct
affairs also stated: "this situation is result of the RBC not paying the IRS
the direct result of a dysfunctional Federal Witholding Taxes on the
governing body who has neglected reservation for the last half of 1989.
their constitutional duties to protect The total in penalties and interest is
our Tribal Sovereignty."
The IRS finally seized what little
was left in the reservation accounts
on May 29th, after nearly a year of
going without proper supervision
managing the accounts.
On the day of the seizure, Adams
was notified by Mr. Bob Peterson,
Vice President of Norwest Bank,
more than $220,000.
"They grabbed all of the RBC
accounts," said Lester Drift Sr.,
Secretary/Treasurer of the Bois
Forte RBC, "and if we don't do
anything within 21 days of last
Thursday, they're going to start
grabbing equipment and all the other
stuff too." Drift, a member of the
dysfunctioning tribal council, has
been at odds with the Bois Forte
Chairman since last year.
According to Adams the current
problems stem from "a critical cash
flow problem where something had
to be done immediately." Adams
attempted to stop the problems last
month when he stepped up measures
to aid the failing reservation by
declaring a "financial crisis within
the Accounting Department." The
plan called for the lay-off of
program staff not considered critical
positions. According to a news
release written by the Bois Forte
Executive Director, "approximately
31 employees were temporarily laid
off."
Negotiations with the Bemidji
Area Health Services had set up a
temporary separate accounting, and
checking system so that the Health
Services Division of the Bois Forte
RBC could remain open. These
accounts have also been included in
the IRS levy of reservation funds.
Chairman Boshey and
Secretary/Treasurer Drift were
notified and instructed Executive
Director Adams to check on the
inquiry of a Reservation Loan from
Norwest bank to cover the IRS debt.
"When they tried to move to
borrow that $500,000," explained
Boshey, "I saw it as bailing out the
RBC's inability to conduct business
for the reservation, all they were
doing was buying time until the
election, there were not conditions
put on the money to start conducting
business again."
Drift did not support the loan and
Crisis/ See page 2
Oppegard candidate for WETC
Oscar A. Oppegard, 44,
announced his candidacy for the
Secretary-Treasurer position on
the White Earth Tribal Council.
Oppegard was bom and raised
on the White Earth Reservation,
and has lived there except for
two years of military service,
1965-67, and two years working
in Minneapolis at Gresen
Manufacturing Company,
1968-70.
"I know and understand the
problems of our people both on
and off the Reservation, and I
must learn more from the people
themselves," Oppegard stated.
He comes from a family of
twelve children, including eight
sisters and three brothers.
He has three daughters, Mrs.
Dean (Michelle) Gillis, 20;
Christine, 18; and Delphine, 6,
and two grandchildren, Evan, 27
months and Elliott, 8 months.
"I will work to improve:
educational programs, cultural
programs, youth programs, and
projects for the elderly; and
pollution of our water and air
must be looked into. Housing
programs need to be improved,
conservation projects need
developing, and economic
developemnt must occur
meaning more jobs. Drug and
alcohol programs need attention
and much more."
"If elected I will go all out to
improve the quality of life for the
people of our Reservation."
Voice   o-f t:1r\&   >N.nisiI-»:ijr"»E».1^>4St
Submitted photo |
MCT Reservation elections
scheduled for June 12
All Minnesota Chippewa Tribe
member reservations have scheduled
general elections for the offices of
Secretary/Treasurer and various
District Representative posts for
June 12,1990.
Member reservations include the
White Earth Reservation, Leech
Lake Reservation, Fond du Lac
Reservation, Bois Forte Reservation,
Grand Portage Reservation, and
Mille Lacs Lake Reservation.
Local precinct polling places will
be open from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
White Earth polling places are:
District III: Pine Point School,
White Earth RBC office, and
Callaway Community Center;
District II: Elbow Lake Community
Center, Mahnomen Old Library,
Nay-Tah-Waush Community
Center, and Waubun Community
Center; District I: Pine Bend Church
Hall, Beaulieu at the Berman Greene
Residence, Bejou Communty
Center, Rice Lake Community
Center, and the Ebro Church.
Leech Lake polling places are:
District I: Ball Club Community
Center, Inger Community Center
and Squaw Lake Community
Center; District II: Bena Community
Center, Sugar Point Community
Center, Smokey Point Center;
District III: Cass Lake RBC Office,
Onigum Center, Mission Center,
Pennington Center, and Squaw Point
at the Toby Losh Residence.
Other polling place locations at
MCT reservations throughout
Minnesota are available through
local RBC offices.
Annette chosen as
Area Director of IHS
By Mark Boswell
Editor
The Indian Health Service Area
Office in Bemidji welcomed the
appointment of Dr. Kathy Annette to
the position of Area Director of the
IHS on June 4th.
Dr. Annette has been Acting Area
Director since last fall.
"They announced the position
several weeks ago," said Annette, of
the administrative position that covers
Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan.
"I'm eventually looking at getting
back to some clinical medicine,"
said Annette, who stressed a desire
to maintain her administrative duties
while continuing to aid Indian
people as a practitioner of medicine.
Dr. Annette feels that she is very
capable of handling the post that
Marv Edevold left last year. "I was
Clinical Director at Cass Lake for
over a year, and Chief Medical
Officer and Chief Administrator of
this area for over a year. In my last
year of residency I was Chief
Resident of Family Practice, so I've
certainly got the administrative
experience."
The IHS area office in Bemidji
oversees the functioning of 26 tribes
in the tri-state area, and administers
36 different clinics throughout that
region. The Area Director is chosen
by a selections panel made up of
federal government personnel
familiar with the IHS; it also
considers input given by the various
tribes in each area. The candidates are
then recommended to Dr. Everette
Dr. Kathy Annette Submitted Photo
Rhoades, Assistant Surgeon General.
The post previously was held by
Elenor Robertson, who served as
Acting Director for a short period.
Before her, Allan Allery was Area
Director. He was removed in
December of 1988. Allery was put
on administrative leave, then
removed from office and convicted
for filing false travel vouchers.
Dr. Annette studied medicine at
the University of Minnesota, Duluth
before transferring to the U of M in
Minneapolis. She graduated from
Red Lake High School, grew up in
Redlake, and is a White Earth
enrollee.'Tm proud of where I grew
up and I'm proud of my heritage,"
said Dr. Annette, "I think that I owe
it to Indian people to maintain the
high standards that IHS strives for."
Food JPag
The Minnesota Department of Health has issued guidelines
for consumption offish caught in our state's waterways.
See page 6
Fifty Cents
Founded In 1988
June 6y 1990     |
' Copyright, the Ojibwe News, 1990
A Bi-Monthly Publication
Bemidji, Minnesota 56601
Features: The White Earth Land Recovery Project
White Earth enrollees Judy Fairbanks (left) and Winona LaDuke (right with her daughter Waseyabin) are working together on the White Earth
Land Recovery Project. An ambitious venture to regain a greater percentage of that reservation's land base and a method by which the people
of White Earth can better benefit from the resources of the reservation; the project aims at the eventual return of thousands of acres of land now
held by interests other than the tribe. See our feature on page 8. (photo by Mark Boswell)
Jourdain loses to Gerald "Butch" Brun
31-Year reign over
Bemidji, Minn. (AP) - Roger
Jourdain predicted doom for the Red
Lake Reservation after he was
defeated for re-election as tribal
chairman after holding the post for
31 years.
"I feel sorry for the members of
the Red Lake Band because they're
going to suffer some dire
consequences   from   some
inexperienced and inept people who
are really irresponsible," Jourdain
said Friday after learning that he had
lost his bid for a ninth term to
Gerald "Butch" Brun.
Brun, 51, a former Tribal Council
member who campaigned on a
promise of more open and
responsive government, received
1,175 votes.
That was 136 more than Jourdain
received, according to election
results certified and released by the
tribal General Election Board, A
third candidate, former tribal judge
Bruce Graves garnered 218 votes.
The results were released more
than 30 hours after the polls
closed.
Brun said creating employment
opportunities for tribal members
will be his first priority. The
reservation's unemployment rate
is between 40 percent and 50
percent.
He wants to get a bank and a smaU
motel built on the reservation. The
nearest motels and banks are in
LOSeS/See page 10
Election recount expected at Red Lake
By Mark Boswell
Editor
Two weeks after the Red Lake
Election an official protest is
expected to produce a recount. A
meeting of the Red Lake Election
Board, scheduled for June 7th, will
decide whether or not the protest of
the May 23rd election is valid.
It is not known whether the
protest, submitted by Clifford
Hardy, a candidate from Ponemah,
will entail a total recount of the
ballots, or only a recount of those
ballots cast in the Ponemah District.
Hardy lost the election to Dan
Raincloud, in the district race by a
four-vote margin. Protests of the
election had to be submitted within 5
days of the election. It is not known
whether Roger Jourdain, who held
the post of Chairman for Red Lake
for 31 years, has submitted an
official protest.
Gerald "Butch" Brun, who won the
race for the Chairman's seat, is not
expected to take office until after
any protests are officially recognized
by the election board.
"There are hopes that I would take
the oath of office at the next regular
meeting on June 12th," said Brun.
Brun explained that Tribal Council
ReCOUnt/See page 10
Warriors going to State
By Mark Boswell
Editor
An electrifying victory brought the
Red Lake Warriors Baseball Team
to the top of the Region 8A
tournament, when they beat the
Bagley Flyers 9-7 last night. The
Warriors travel to St. Cloud next
week to play in the Minnesota State
High School Tournament.
According to Don Hazeman, Head
Coach and Boy's Athletic Director
from Red Lake, the Warriors took
Roseau 7-6 in ten innings on June
4th. Red Lake wasn't even ranked
up until that time. "They didn't even
know we existed," said Hazeman,
"we were just happy to win
ballgames." Roseau was ranked 4th
or 5th most of rthe year.
Red Lake's win over Bagley, a
team ranked 13th in the region
during the year, is unprecedented.
Warriors team members include:
Gary Cobenais, Robert French,
Henry Sayers Jr., Bruce Sayers,
Two miles of cars greet the Warriors
after they defeat Bagley
Nolan Desjarlait, B.J.Graves
Jr.(designated hitter), Cory Graves,
Aldon Beaulieu, Ricky Barrett,
Morris Benais (pinch hitter)8th
grader, Billy Chaboyea, Billy Roy
(pinch runner), Clinton Donnell,
Dolan Donnell (who pulled
ligaments in the District championship
game in Bagley last Friday), and
Darin Cook (who broke his hand in
a game in Blackduck).
B.J. Graves Jr. is one of two
seniors, all of the others will be
returning next season. Jim Fink is
the team's assistant coach.
Bagley scored two in the third,
five in the fourth; Red Lake scored
two in the first, one in the third, two
in the fourth, two in the fifth, and
two in the sixth.
Hazeman described the last inning:
"At the top of the seventh....last
inning, Bagley had the tying runs on
3rd and 2nd base with only one out,
a single would have turned the game
around. Red Lake was able to hold
out, strike out the batter, grounding
the last to the pitcher, and winning
the ball game."
The historic game is only the third
time in as many decades that Red
Lake will go beyond the Regional
Tournament, and the first team to
ever advance to the State Tourney.
Graduate Robert French, a relief,
got his first win of the season
yesterday by shutting out Bagley in
the first three innings and eventually
taking the game.
Roseau beat them 15-5, and
Bagley beat 15-5 in the District
Tourney this spring, yet Red Lake
came back to avenge the losses in
the Region Tournament. "What a
way to avenge losses," said
Hazeman.
Two miles of cars filled with fans
met the team at the reservation
boundary. Victory Banners and
signs greeted them back home.
The Warriors now go on to
challenge the Chatfield, Minn., team,
who are the Region 1A Champs.
The game will be at 11 a.m.
Tuesday, June 12, at the Dick Putz
Field in St. Cloud. Red Lake Fan
buses will leave the High School
before the tourney; contact the
school for times. A banquet,
sponsored by the State High School
League, will be held for the teams
on Monday night at the Holiday Inn
St. Cloud.