Forensic audit to be focus of Gwich'in assembly

Grand Chief Ken Kyikavichik of the Gwich'in Tribal Council says he's not deterred by criticism of a forensic audit. He says the audit shows some officials with Gwich'in organizations have used their authority to improperly enrich themselves financially.

"We don't have any second thoughts, if you want to call it that," said Kyikavichik. "Unfortunately, we've come to the realization that there's just far too much water under the bridge to ignore, and that we do need to look into it further…which is what has occurred through this forensic audit process."

The findings of the audit were to be discussed at the Gwich'in Tribal Council (GTC)'s annual general assembly, which was to occur Aug. 15 to 17 in Aklavik. It was postponed due to wildfires in the region, then postponed again due to wildfires in the North Slave and South Slave regions.

Last week, Kyikavichik posted a slide presentation on the audit that he had planned to make at the assembly on Facebook. Some commenters supported the forensic audit, saying some of the issues identified in it have been talked about for years without any corrective action. Others were critical of Kyikavichik for posting it on Facebook, saying it is a private matter that should be addressed internally. 

In an interview with CBC News on Friday, Kyikavichik said the audit found a litany of problems and conflicts of interest in designated Gwich'in organizations.

"There were bonus payments being made and, in some cases, presidents, directors and staff signing their own bonus cheques. It wasn't clear that council had even approved these bonuses," said Kyikavichik.

"There was credit card transactions that required not only the councils but the forensic auditor to be in contact with the credit card companies, because the statements and receipts were nowhere to be found."

The audit also uncovered councils purchasing vehicles from presidents and staff with no evidence of council approval to make purchases, "so direct conflicts of interest weren't properly declared or managed."

The auditors examined the books of designated Gwich'in organizations for the period from 2015 to 2021. Kyikavichik said the GTC board is planning to hand over the findings of the audit to the RCMP to determine if anything criminal was uncovered.

Kyikavichik said more detail of the audit's findings will be presented at the annual general assembly. He said the audit report will likely be released publicly at some point.

The president of the Tetlit Gwich'in Council in Fort McPherson was suspended by the Gwich'in Tribal Council's board of directors earlier this year, according to meeting minutes posted on the GTC's website. The president of the Gwichya Gwich'in Council of Tsiigehtchic had been suspended earlier. Kyikavichik says neither suspension is related to the forensic audit. He said they're related to alleged violations of the GTC's code of conduct, but would not say what the allegations are. He said they will also be discussed at the annual general assembly.

No date has been set for it yet and a location has not been finalized.

CBC News contacted former GTC Grand Chief Richard Nerysoo for comment, but he said he wants to wait until he sees the audit before commenting.

CBC News also reached out to a number of other Gwich'in leaders on Facebook and by phone, including the suspended president of the Tetlit Gwich'in Council, Abe Wilson, but received no response.