WLIB USES RCMP FORCE TO EVICT MAN FROM HIS HOME
For Immediate Release
May 19, 2016
(Unceded, Unsurrendered Secwepemc Territory – Williams Lake, BC) This story needs to be told because far too many of our people are being evicted and even banned from our communities for speaking out and taking action to have their basic human rights upheld by the very people put in place to represent our interests.
On May 16th, Sheldon Wycotte and his family moved back into his home because he did not have a safe, healthy place for his baby to live. Plus, the Williams Lake Indian Band (WLIB) breached its agreement made between them to renovate his home if they temporarily moved out. Once he moved back in, the WLIB Band Manager, Marg Shelley, kept harassing Sheldon telling him that “the band owns the home and he and his family are in the house illegally and will be removed with force if necessary.” He also received similar warnings by the Aboriginal Community RCMP Police Officer, Cst. Neufeld.
In a statement made by April Thomas, WLIB community member, “I believe these actions taken by the WLIB we done so deliberately in order to incite violence by using the RCMP to do their dirty work instead of serving him a proper eviction so he can formally challenge it within the system. They knew he would get charged and they [the Crown] would impose conditions for him not to be allowed on the Sugarcane reserve. They did this to many other members as well. This is an abuse of authority, power and policies.”
Sheldon grew up in this house all his life, his grampa Ray Moisse, may he RIP, always maintained that he owned the house and even built much of it himself. Ray just recently passed away. The band even admitted that the house had been paid off for some time. Their own housing policy even states that in the event of the owner passing, if “the children are members of the Band, ownership will pass to the children” but instead the WLIB want to take over the ownership so they can generate revenue from renting it out like many other homes. This is what they are initially trying to do with Sheldon was to charge rent on the house even though it is paid off.
It is the WLIB who is illegally and forcefully taking their family home away right after their grandpa just passed away, and using the RCMP force to do so. This is what the band is doing with many of the houses that are paid off in this community; they are not being upfront with the 'housing ownership tenure' and informing occupants that their houses are paid off and they need to do a ‘home ownership agreement’. As in the case of Ray, the band waited until he died and now claim that they 'own the house' because Ray never did a ownership transfer agreement. Other tenants, they are not letting them know upon request what the status of their ownership tenure is in terms of their houses being paid off, and then they wait till its paid off and find reasons to evict people. (This is what they been doing to my family as well)
Meanwhile, here the WLIB Chief and Council are breaching their fiduciary obligations, their oath of office, and violating the human rights of the very people they are supposed to represent.
In the Louie vs. Louie case, the Court of Appeal focused on the “two most fundamental and long standing obligations of fiduciaries – the ‘no conflict’ rule and the ‘no profit’ rule.” The no conflict rule means that a fiduciary must not put himself in a position where there is a conflict or significant possibility of a conflict, between his personal interests and his fiduciary duty. The no profit rule requires a fiduciary to account for any benefit obtained by reason of or use of his fiduciary position – he cannot profit from his position.
In this case, the courts explained that there are exceptions under which trustees, corporate directors, band councillors, municipal councillors, and other persons entrusted with the funds of others are permitted to make decisions regarding their own remuneration that would otherwise be regarded as a breach of the ‘no profit’ rule. The exceptions are provisions in trust agreements, or bylaws or rules that specifically authorize such a decision by the fiduciary.
The Court noted that section 83(1) of the Indian Act provides that subject to the Minister’s approval, a band council may make bylaws for various purposes, including “(b) the appropriation and expenditure of moneys of the band to defray expenses,” and “(c) the appointment of officials to conduct the business of the council, prescribing their duties and providing for their remuneration out of any moneys raised…”
In the absence of any bylaw or other rules to govern such payments, the Court looked at section 2(3) of the Indian Act which provides that, unless the context otherwise requires or the Act otherwise provides,
(a) a power conferred on a band shall be deemed not to be exercised unless it is exercised pursuant to the consent of a majority of the electors of the band; and
(b) a power conferred on the council of a band shall be deemed not to be exercised unless it is exercised pursuant to the consent of a majority of the councillors of the band present at a meeting of the council duly convened.
In this case, Council did not receive the consent of the majority of the electors for the payments and the Court said there was no basis for this “very fundamental statutory decision” being ignored.[i]
In the case of the WLIB Chief & Council, they are ALL in a conflict of interest and stand to profit from their positions, as each and every one of them is a manager or coordinator, their families hold most jobs and contracts, and they set their own management salaries, with full medical benefits, on top of paying themselves to attend meetings. Meanwhile they force the people to suffer under their rule and dictatorship while they all live rich lavish lifestyles. They never had the Consent of the people hire and give themselves the best wages; that’s stealing from the people.
Both the RCMP and Chief & Council do not have the authority to remove someone from a home that is privately owned. Had the WLIB been upfront with elder Ray that all he had to do was sign an ownership agreement when the house was paid off, of course he would have signed it, he would have legally owned the house and we wouldn't be in this mess right now.
The actions taken by WLIB Chief & Council are in breach of their fiduciary obligations to act in the best interests of the people, and further violate our human rights to be treated fair and equal. Plus gross mismanagement of all programs and funding needs to be investigated as well. There is no accountability or transparency in dealing with any band related issues.
Sheldon is currently being charged with Mischief, and is also has a court ordered condition that is not allowed on the Sugarcane reserve. This is very similar, and a deliberate attempt by the WLIB & WL RCMP to remove our people from our home community, as in the case of Darcy Kobelt, WLIB band member, who recently broke the Treaty Ballot box during the Agreement In Principle Treaty Referendum vote. He was also charged with Mischief and banned from being in the WLIB community for doing so. Sheldon is currently fighting these charges and the condition to be banned from the community on the grounds that it violates his aboriginal rights and title.
Sheldon, his girlfriend Shaina and their baby Katona are all left with no home, and the band or the WL RCMP don't care they have no other place to live either!!!
We all have the right to own our homes and work hard for it, not just those in power! It’s not right to take people's homes they worked hard and paid for!! The WLIB Chief & Council are the ones who need to be investigated and controlled; they work for the people and need to be reminded of that!!! The WLIB community members and elders are calling on a Special Band Meeting to be held to discuss the issues.
Please pray for Sheldon and his family, as this whole ordeal is very difficult for Sheldon & his family because they are still trying to heal from losing their Pe7e Ray, on top of being forced out of the home he grew up in is too much to handle.
A legal fund is being organized to help Sheldon and his family fight the WLIB and WL RCMP Mischief charges, and ban from the community and to get his house back. This is what Ray would want, so please if you can donate to support the legal costs of this court battle please e-transfer to secwepemcgrassroots@hotmail.com ,
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Here is a video of Sheldon Wycotte being forcibly removed from his home today at Sugarcane, the home his grandfather Ray Moise bought and helped build. The RCMP are acting under the direction of the Williams Lake Indian Band Chief & Council. (https://www.facebook.com/april.thomas3/posts/10153742169105819?notif_t=like¬if_id=1463631798692209 )
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Media Contacts:
April Thomas – Organizer and spokesperson, Secwepemc’ulecw Grassroots Movement
(C)778-267-6619
Email: secwepemcgrassroots@hotmail.com
[i]http://www.mandellpinder.com/louie-v-louie-2015-bcca-247-case-summary/