Ahhh, the Honourable Paul Martin...the man with deep pockets

The Honourable Paul Martin speaks about the poverty of First Nations people. The Winnipeg Free Press article discusses the former Prime Minister's take on poverty:  "This is not only unspeakably immoral, it is economically dumb," the nation's 21st prime minister said. "It is dumber than a bag of hammers."

Thank you for those kind words but why did not you do anything about the poverty when you had the opportunity to do so as Prime Minister?  Did you pump money directly into the First Nations communities to address the issues of poverty such as clean water and food security?  No, you did not.  Instead, you chose to hold national roundtables that benefitted no one but the Aboriginal industry. 

There is nothing in the Kelowna Accord except a bunch of promises to promise to negotiate. There was nothing concrete or binding in that Accord.  I am by no means a Conservative follower but how could the Harper government implement that Accord when there was nothing in it to implement?

Don't get me wrong.  I think your post-PM Aboriginal initiative is great.  "The Martin Aboriginal Initiative is devoted to encouraging aboriginal kids to stay in school and pursuing careers in fields such as business and banking. It also assists in the development of aboriginal businesses. In Winnipeg, Martin's not-for-profit corporation has worked with such organizations as Children of the Earth High School, the Business Council of Manitoba and the Winnipeg School Division."

If you really want to make up for your inaction on First Nations issues as Prime Minister, you should invest in the restructuring of the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) as an organization so that it can effectively advocate for the interests of First Nations people.  The AFN is a prisoner of the federal government of the day and First Nations people have the right to speak under section 2 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. 

Read the link to Paul Martin's speech on Wednesday.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/ex-pm-blunt-on-aboriginals-111986229.html