CBC: People in parts of the Sahtu will be voting on proposed access and benefit agreements with Imperial Oil this week. No one is saying what’s in the agreements that will pave the way for construction of the natural gas pipeline. All the partners have agreed to keep the details quite for now, but as Julie Green reports, the vote on the tentative agreements could be divisive.

GREEN: After months of negotiation there is movement on access and benefit agreements. Negotiators are travelling to Tulita and Norman Wells today. People there are expected to vote on the deal Thursday. The leadership of Fort Good Hope and Colville Lake are now looking at a deal and may decide to take it to a vote later this week as well. A split has emerged. Stephen Kakfwi, once described as the district’s chief negotiator, has been sidelined, downgraded to a technical advisor. Kakfwi has been promoting a controversial proposal to tax the pipeline, which would bring in annual income for the community.

KAKFWI: You know, and Imperial Oil and the federal government have made it very clear they’re not happy with my involvement. They’ve always tried to find a way to get us out of the picture.

GREEN: Even the leadership of Kakfwi’s home community is distancing themselves from him. Kakfwi thinks that may be because he’s thinking of running federally. Ron Piro, chief of Fort Good Hope, wouldn’t say why Kakfwi’s role has changed.

PIRO: Somebody that’s from the community that doesn’t live in the community shouldn’t be identified as speaking for the Gashotine position, particularly to the media.

GREEN: The question about who speaks to the district may be cleared up at a leadership meeting today. No one in the Inuvialuit, Gwich’in or Dehcho regions wanted to talk about the status of their talks yesterday. Julie Green, CBC News, Yellowknife.

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