'The rules are clear': Sask. First Nations leaders say Cameron not eligible to run for FSIN Chief

Delegates from 74 Saskatchewan First Nations head to the polls on Thursday to elect a new chief of the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN).

Delegates from 74 Saskatchewan First Nations are gathering in Saskatoon on Thursday to elect a new chief of the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN).

Heading into the vote, some leaders are crying foul over incumbent Chief Bobby Cameron’s bid for re-election to a third term. They say his 1993 criminal record for break and enter and theft means he should never have been allowed to run, according to the FSIN’s own election bylaws.

Cameron’s criminal record came to light amid a contentious 2021 election that ended with the FSIN’s own electoral officer filing a lawsuit against the organization, claiming administrators actively worked to restrict her oversight role and to conceal irregularities.

An internal committee allowed Cameron to run anyway, despite a clause in the FSIN’s election act that bars someone from running if they have a past conviction for theft. Anyone who received a criminal conviction in the last five years is also ineligible under the bylaw.

Earlier this month, former Flying Dust Cree Nation Chief Robert Merasty issued a public letter to the chiefs of the FSIN’s 74 member nations calling for Cameron’s removal from the ballot.

Allowing Cameron to run undermines the integrity of their election process, and the trust people have in their institutions, says Merasty, also a former FSIN vice-chief.

“Good governance is integral to any organization,” he told CTV News in a phone interview.