Kelvin Kotchilea, the NWT's NDP candidate, is criticizing the Liberal government's failure to ensure the timely disclosure of financial statements of some regulatory boards.

Kotchilea's comments come in response to a number of land and water boards in the territory not having their financial records publicly available after deadlines to comply. According to the , a board has to submit a report on its activities to the federal minister, including its financial statements for the year.

SA国际影视传媒淭he minister's failure to share these reports is indicative of this government's relationship with Indigenous peoples SA国际影视传媒� forgetting their promises and obligations. Northerners deserve better," Kotchilea's Oct. 16 statement reads. 

Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Gary Anandasangaree is the minister responsible for making those statements publicly available. A statement from his office stated that the government will do better in the future, making sure reports are posted in a timely manner.

Kimberly Fairman, the NWT Conservative candidate for MP, did not provide a comment.

"Unfortunately, now would not be a good time as we are focusing on preparing for an election," said Alex Osorio, Fairman's political operations officer.

SA国际影视传媒 also reached out to NWT MP Michael McLeod for comment, but he did not respond before publication deadline.

On Oct. 22, the minister's office sent an updated statement about the land and water board situation. It came following questions from SA国际影视传媒, asking if the minister is at fault for not making these financial statements publicly available and why the minister won't speak directly over the phone. Although those two questions were still not answered, it did provide some additional details.

"The department works closely with boards to support an integrated system of land and water co-management in the Mackenzie Valley. Supported by the department, boards perform certain regulatory functions prescribed by the [MVRMA], including establishing a shared public registry and online review system," stated Eric Head, a spokesperson for the minister.

His statement adds that the Covid-19 pandemic and the forest fires that led to last year's evacuation of Yellowknife and other NWT communities were unprecedented disruptions that kept their websites from being current.

"We appreciate the work the boards have done to get reports posted on their sites following these disruptions, and we will continue to work with boards so that future reports are posted in a timely manner," Head wrote.