Preparations are well underway for a legislative assembly of the Metis Nation of Saskatchewan next month, followed by a general election in September.
These are two key hurdles that must be cleared in order to prevent the organization from closing.
If all goes according to plan, full funding will be restored to the organization after the election. It lost its federal funding in 2014 because for five years, it failed to hold what are meant to be semi-annual legislative assemblies as is required by its constitution.
Ernst and Young is overseeing the Assembly, which will be held in Yorkton at the end of July. It has sent out notices to all locals to register them for the upcoming assembly. There will be two days of meetings and a date will be set for the general election, which is expected to be Sept. 3.
Current president Robert Doucette is not seeking reelection. He has been president since 2007.
He declined MBC’s request for an interview today because of personal reasons, but will have more to say later this week.
Meanwhile, a notice on the website of the Metis Nation of Saskatchewan indicates the office will be closed until after the election.
The Metis Nation is more than $725,000 in debt. At its last council meeting in April it voted to sell some off its library and archives to the Gabriel Dumont Institute for $500,000.
Ernst and Young is managing the affairs of the organization until its financial house is back in order.
It is also overseeing the legislative assembly and general election to make sure they are held in a transparent way in accordance with the constitution of the organization. The organization represents about 80,000 Metis people in Saskatchewan.