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PIKANGIKUM FIRST NATION, Ont. – For the first time, a sitting Canadian prime minister has visited Nishnawbe Aski Nation territory.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, joined by Indigenous Services Minister Jane Philpott and Northwestern Ontario MPs Bob Nault (Lib., Kenora) and Don Rusnak (Lib., Thunder Bay-Rainy River), made a historic stop in Pikangikum First Nation on Friday.
“We are honoured that Pikangikum is the first NAN community the Prime Minister has visited, and we are pleased to welcome him and all of our guests to our growing community,” Pikangikum First Nation Chief Dean Owen said in a statement.
“We are eager to show the Prime Minister our beautiful new school full of youth who are eager to learn, and look forward to him hearing directly from our young leaders. By making time to visit us, the Prime Minister is sending a powerful message to our young people that I hope will inspire them to follow their dreams and reach their full potential.”
During his visit, Trudeau met with Pikangikum leadership, elders and the youth council. The prime minister also participated in the dedication of the Eenchokay Birchstick School, which opened in 2016 to replace the former school which was destroyed in a 2007 fire.
Trudeau was also given an update on the $60 million Wataynikaneyap Power Pikangikum Distribution Line Project funded by the federal government which would connect the community to the provincial electrical grid.
“We are honoured that the Prime Minister has come to see first-hand the many positive things that are happening in Pikangikum,” said Nishnawbe Aski Nation Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler.
“This is an historic day, and we hope this signals the beginning of a renewed nation-to-nation relationship between the people of Pikangikum and the government of Canada.”
Pikangikum, a community of 3,000 people about 500 kilometres north of Thunder Bay, has been plagued by an ongoing suicide crisis and parts of the reserve been subject to a drinking water advisory for more than a decade.
A lack of housing has led to overcrowding, where as many as a dozen people are forced to live in a single dwelling. In 2016, nine community residents ranging in age from five months to 55 years old were killed in a house fire.
“(Friday’s) visit should reinforce the Prime Minister’s commitment to improve the socio-economic conditions of our peoples. True reconciliation will not be achieved through apologies and funding lines in a budget to be released in 2020. For the sake of our children, we need action now,” Ontario Regional Chief Isadore Day said in a statement.
