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The Manitoba government and physicians have a tentative agreement on a four-year contract.
The contract still needs membership’s approval.
The content of the contract includes a pay freeze for the first two years, then a 0.75 per cent increase in the third year and one per cent increase in the fourth year.
Also in the contract is an additional 2 million dollars for maternity and paternal benefits per year, an additional 1 million dollars per year for the continuing medical education rebate program, and the 10 million dollar annual fund for the physician retention program has been extended.
Some health-care unions are taking the government to court over legislated wage freezes, nurses have gone two years without a contract and talks have been on hold with other health-care unions.
The ratification process is underway and members should be receiving their ballots shortly.
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
A potential choking hazard has led Health Canada to issue a recall on Joe Fresh brand baby sun hats.
The agency issuing the recall says the loop fastener on the hats, which come in a variety of colours and patterns, may detach and pose a choking hazard.
The recall affects roughly 64-thousand hats that were sold across the country between January and June of this year.
Health Canada says the company hasn't received any reports of injuries. If you have one, stop using it immediately and return it for a full refund.
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- Contributed by Darnell Duff
Last week the RCMP held an event to thank the community of Onanole after an officer was shot in the line of duty last August.
Julie Courchaine with the RCMP says they recognized the efforts of residents in Onanole and the surrounding area.
“They went above and beyond in their assistance during a critical incident. The support the community gave us that day and the days after was absolutely tremendous.”
Julie Courchaine says over 20 people received an RCMP certificate of appreciation for various actions.
“From giving food, lodging to our members that were coming up to relieve other members, to opening up a gas station in the middle of the night so our police vehicles could continue to run as we were still searching for suspects. There was absolutely no shortage of help that terrible evening and so the RCMP wanted to do something to show thanks and appreciation, which is why we had that event at the Onanole Rec Centre.”
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
The Manitoba First Nations Police have seen unprecedented results after the introduction of their K-9 Unit.
K-9 Ceto has helped in close to 30 arrests since completing her training in May. Including two at the Waywayseecappo First Nation over the weekend that saw her track down suspects for over 1000 metres and even finding a suspect underwater.
“She’s an amazing animal and has great skills.” said the acting Chief of the MFNPS Bruno Rossi. “Some arrests would have been made; some wouldn’t have been made without Ceto. She’s a great asset to our Police Service.”
Rossi said that due to the success that Ceto has had, the police service is looking at adding another dog to the force and having a dedicated K-9 Unit.
Ceto has helped out in all sorts of calls around the province since she started. While she deals with all the arrests, there is another dog owned the MFNPS that specializes in Search and Rescue.
The MFNPS is expanding into OCN in 2020.
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- Contributed by Josh Sigurdson
The 7th Annual Riding Mountain National Park Film Festival begins tonight inside Wasagaming.
It runs until July 21 and features different films from across North America, as well as singing performances.
Tonight, a couple of Dauphin residents will take part in the Opening Reception. Melissa Stefaniw and Marc Clement, will be inside the Visitors Centre Cinema. The duo will start things off by showing their musical talents. There will also be four short films and it all begins at 8:00 p.m.
Tomorrow night, there will be a special screening of the Secret Life of Pets 2 inside the Park Theatre, and it's just $2 to watch.
"Wasagaming is a fantastic place to host a film festival," said Steve Langston, Festival Director. "It's always an exciting time of year when the festival gets going and we're going to have a lot of fun tonight to start it off."
You can find a full list of movies that will be aired at Riding Mountain National Park Film Festival. Most films are just $10.
On Saturday at 6:30 p.m., there will be an event called "A Taste for Film" going on inside the Visitor's Centre Cinema. The movie is called Fermented and it runs for 80 minutes. After the movie, there will be a meal included revolving around dishes from the movie itself. To take part in that event, it's $30.
Morgan Elliot wraps up the festival on Sunday night at 9:00 p.m. with "Band Geeks" inside the Visitor's Centre Cinema.
To get your tickets for all the fantastic screenings, head to the Film Festival at Friends of Riding Mountain National Park at 146 TaWaPit Drive.
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- Contributed by Darnell Duff
The Manitoba First Nations Police Service’s K-9 Unit nabbed a few more arrests over the weekend.
On July 12th, MFNPS was called to an address on Birdtail Road on the Waywayseecappo First Nation where an assault occurred.
Upon arrival, two subjects were seen running in two different directions. K-9 Ceto followed one of the subjects north for close to 500 metres. A male was arrested without incident. The second suspect ran west and Ceto tracked them for nearly 800 metres. A female was arrested for assault and numerous breach charges.
Then on July 13th, MFNPS was on patrol when a vehicle made a quick turn in front of the Police Unit. After refusing to stop, the suspect vehicle ran from police and after a short pursuit, the vehicle lost control through a field. The female passenger was arrested without incident but the male driver took off running.
K-9 Ceto immediately tracked the driver, where he was found hiding under water in deep mud and grass. He was then quickly arrested and transported to the Waywayseecappo detachment.
He is facing charges for Flight from Police, Resisting arrest, Driving prohibited, dangerous driving, and mischief over $5000 (damage to the personal property).
These charges are on top of previous charges of impaired operation, failure to attend court, and flight from police.
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- Contributed by Josh Sigurdson
There have been reports that the Lone Star tick is in Manitoba.
Unlike the black-legged tick which can cause Lyme disease, the Lone Star tick could make you change your eating habits. A bite could make you allergic to red meat. While the reports are correct, you would be very unlucky to come in contact with one.
"Since 2015, the Manitoba Tick Surveillance Program has detected 0-2 per year," said Dr. Mahmoud Khodaveisi, Medical Officer of Health with Prairie Mountain Health. "We're fairly sure that this tick has not established in Manitoba, yet."
That means less than 10 Lone Star ticks have been detected since 2015. A Lone Star tick is very distinctive in appearance. It has a white dot on its body.
Symptoms from a Lone Star tick bite include hives or skin rash, nausea, stomach cramps, indigestion, vomiting, diarrhea, stuffy nose, sneezing, headaches, and asthma.
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- Contributed by Darnell Duff
The federal government has decided to launch a financial probe of the Métis National Council after a meeting with investigators from the RCMP.
Ernst & Young was hired by the federal Crown- Indigenous Relations Department to conduct a compliance audit of the MNC that began in July 2018. The MNC receives millions of dollars for its operations annually from the federal government.
The audit was launched after department officials met with the RCMP’s sensitive and international investigations unit who had opened a case on the MNC.
RCMP interviewed three former MNC employees. They named two individuals in advisory roles with the MNC who own, owned, or are connected to companies that have received hundreds of thousands of dollars in contracts from the MNC over the last four years.
The complaint alleges that some federal funds transferred to the organization for Métis programs were redirected through double payments for travel, expenses and equipment and through contracts to a select group of companies and consultants.
No charges have been laid as a result of the allegations as they haven’t been proven in court.
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- Contributed by Josh Sigurdson
Doctors are back on board Lifeflight planes- at least for now.
After refusing to board the new planes when the Cessna Citation jets were grounded in mid-June, the doctors are getting back in the air, with a schedule set for July.
Last week was the first time that Lifeflight planes have been fully staffed since the middle of June, according to Lifeflight medical director Renate Singh.
Due to the doctor shortage, planes were staffed with advanced care paramedics and nurses.
Dr. Singh says the doctors’ safety concerns have been addressed so the doctors agreed to try out the new system. Singh went on to add that just because the doctors are back on board now, it doesn’t guarantee they will continue to be after the trial period.
The trial period will allow time for doctors to decide for themselves whether they want to continue working in the new environment.
Dr. Singh said the trial is a big step of good faith for the doctors involved and then proceeded to call the new planes “considerably sub-optimal” compared to the old ones.
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- Contributed by Josh Sigurdson
The Turtle River Watershed Conservation District is looking for a member at large.
They recently had a member resign from the Sub District #46 Board and are looking to replace them.
Donna Ainscough says they are looking for someone with a general knowledge of the conservation districts or a desire to have that knowledge.
The member is required to attend sub-district meetings which there are only 2-3 in a year.
If the member became chairperson or vice chair, there would be monthly turtle river meetings to attend.
The member’s duties are to bring forward any concerns about drainage or any other conservation projects to the board on behalf of the RM of Lakeshore.
If you’re interested, contact Donna Ainscough by Friday, July 19th. The RM of Lakeshore’s phone number is 204 732-2333, and her email is, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
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- Contributed by Isaac Wihak
The leader of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs is leaving his role temporarily to “heal” just days after being accused of inappropriate communication with a younger woman.
Grand Chief Arlen Dumas strongly denied the accusations that he used a fake Facebook account to chat with the woman but admitted to having other communications with her.
Grand Chief Dumas said he will be taking a short leave of absence to receive counselling and professional sensitivity training to ensure further communications are more formal.
Dumas is just short of his second year the helm of the AMC, which advocates for 62 First Nations in Manitoba. He is being accused of sending messages to a woman from a Facebook account with the name of Charles Forbes. The woman has been described as a 22-year-old woman, which would make her two decades younger than Dumas.
The woman is not being named because the allegations haven’t been verified.
Dumas says the allegations are part of a manufactured political smear.
He admitted he was in contact with the woman, saying he was following up on advice that she had asked for. He also admitted that his communications haven’t always been professional, but denied that he was pursuing intimate relations with the woman.
Dumas has been Chief of the Mathias Colomb Cree Nation for a decade and has prided himself on being available to his community at all times.
The Grand Chief added that the leave of absence will help him deal with his traumas, but did not specify. His son, who had cystic fibrosis, died this year.
The Chief of Black River First Nation, Sheldon Kent, will take over Dumas’ responsibilities.
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- Contributed by Josh Sigurdson
