A First Nations man has been picked to head up the Prince Albert Board of Police Commissioners.
Richard Ahenakew is the general manager of the Northern Lights Casino.
He also is a past chairman of the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce.
This morning, he was sworn in as the Police Commission’s new chairman.
He says having someone who is arms distance from city council will help remove any semblance of politics from the decision-making process:
“I think for a lot of these boards, it’s good to have a non political view when you’re coming in to look at it — and with my business background, I think that helps a lot.”
Also elected to the commission was Mayor Greg Dionne who will serve as Vice-Chairman.
Councillors Lee Atkinson and Tim Scharkowski were also named to the board, along with private businessmen Joe Hargrave and Tanner Leger.
The final person named was a Metis woman.
Sandy Pitzel works at the city’s cooperative health centre and also directs the community against family violence group.
She hopes the presence of herself and Richard Ahenakew gives Aboriginal residents more confidence when contacting the board about a problem:
“And I think being Aboriginal people — Richard’s First Nations, I’m Metis — we do know people in the community from all backgrounds.”
She adds she will always speak up on behalf of Aboriginal people.