This morning’s e-mail news alerts contained a sad assortment of cases involving alleged fraud and unethical conduct by tribal government officials.
There was this: The Suquamish Tribe has hired an independent investigator to review the Tribal Council's credit card usage after allegations that one councilwoman had withdrawn more than $6,800 for non-government uses. Councilwoman Linda Holt remains on the board, though some elders have asked for her resignation. Holt is accused of taking out unauthorized cash advances with her government credit card. Read more …
And this: The former Passamaquoddy tribal governor at Indian Township and the tribe’s ex-business manager are due in federal court today to face trial on charges of misusing federal funds. Robert L. Newell and James J. Parisi Jr., are charged with misusing $1.7 million in federal funds, health care center funds and other tribal money over a 4-and-a-half-year period. Newell, who most recently served as tribal governor at Indian Township from 2002 to 2006, and Parisi, who served as Indian Township’s finance director from 2003 to 2006, were indicted on March 19 by a federal grand jury after a nearly two-year investigation. Read more …
And finally this: Last week, Rjay Brunkow, solicitor general for the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe, revealed that a yearlong "active criminal investigation" by the FBI, the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs and a Twin Cities law firm hired by the tribe has uncovered massive fraud within the band's Community Development Department, involving tribal building projects. No criminal charges have been filed, but so far the band has fired its commissioner of community development and five department employees, all of whom were implicated along with former Tribal Chairwoman Melanie Benjamin in having personally received services or materials from public projects, Brunkow said. Benjamin was removed from office last month, but denies any wrong-doing. She says she will fight to regain her seat. Read more …
One of the most corrupt forms of local government is in Indian Country. I'm ashamed to admit this but after being in Indian politics for the past 30 years I have seen it all. Politicians sell out their own children, family and community for their own personal greed. There are no checks or balances to ensure that funds are not mis-managed or mis-appropriated by local factions. These factions only take care of themselves, some of their supporters and families. Federal agencies don't seem to care and when they are exposed, the Feds exonerate themselves from any blame and say that American Indians cannot handle their own affairs. This the colonial mentality that we have to deal with everyday.
ReplyDeleteOne prime example, is with the Aroostook Band of Micmacs in Presque Isle, Maine. There was a general election held in 2007 and Marilyn Francis Carleton was elected by a majority yet the Bureau of Indian Affairs Regional Director, Frank Keele didn't recognize Mrs. Carleton as Chief but recognized Victor Higgins who lost the election as Chief. There is something radically wrong with this picture. How can Indian Affairs interfere in local tribal politics when the majority of tribal members have spoken in giving Mrs. Carleton a majority. This appeal has been on-going since that time and there is no sign of any kind of a resolution to this outrageous miscarriage of justice. In the meantime, the democratic election process was rejected by BIA and endorsed a candidate who lost the elections. If anything, there should have been a re-election and this internal problem should have been resolved within a few months. Community members are the ones in limbo as this un-elected faction is put in power by the BIA. The appeal process continues at a pace where the mandate of the newly elected Chief, Marilyn Francis Carleton will be up in May of 2009 and will most probably will not be able to assume her position as chief of the Aroostook Band of Micmacs.