Nest egg cracks
The Crees have not escaped the global financial meltdown. The Cree Nation Trust, created to manage the $1.1 billion transferred to the Crees last February by the federal government under the terms of the 20-year New Relationship Agreement with Canada, reported at the December Council Board meeting that the value of its investments have declined by $140 million.
The loss is actually more significant than it first appears, because only 40 per cent of the fund – or about $440 million – was to be risked on the market in unsecured investments. This portion of the fund has therefore declined about 30 per cent. The remaining 60 per cent is in guaranteed investments such as government bonds.
Meanwhile, one Cree leader says the loss means that more qualified people should be running the Trust.
“Back when the idea first came out to have the Cree Nation Trust … I was very concerned with who was appointed,” Deputy Grand Chief Ashley Iserhoff told the Nation.
The Trust is managed by a board of six members appointed last winter: former Grand Chief Matthew Coon Come chairs the board; the vice-chair is former Grand Chief Ted Moses; Tanya Pash serves as the treasurer; Philip Awashish, Albert Diamond and Robert Kanatewat serve as board members.
None of the board members responded to requests for comment on this story.
These appointments concern Iserhoff because while he says those serving on the board have significant political experience, limited investment knowledge is limited.
“I think you do need to know in positions like that, when you are making decisions on behalf of the Nation you should seriously have a background for whatever capacity you are in, like in the Cree Nation Trust,” said Iserhoff. “You have the two former grand chiefs, you have a few of the people who were part of the JBQNA negotiations, and you do have one individual in there that has a background in finance.”
Iserhoff did not outright oppose the appointment of those who currently oversee the Cree Nation Trust, but the appointments prompted him to send a letter to all of the council board members expressing his concern. Iserhoff himself declined an offer to serve on the board as he felt he lacked the financial experience necessary for the task.
He has asked the Trust’s administrators how the investment losses can be recouped. “I had asked them to come back to the council board to let us know how they were going to work that out,” said Iserhoff.
The response Iserhoff received from the board of trustees was that the Cree were in a similar position in the early 1980s and their finances recovered at that time.
“I know that things are different now from that time and I was told that it was a paper loss, per se. I am hoping that the trust finds ways where we can recuperate the money that was lost through the investments,” said Iserhoff.