Southern Chiefs Organization – is making an urgent appeal to all levels of government to free up increased funding and resources to contain COVID-19 in First Nations where the test positivity rate among First Nations is 11% vs the provincial average of 8.6%. Manitoba has the worst case count per capita in Canada including daily outbreaks in hospitals, personal care homes, jails, and remote communities. “The provincial government had six months to prepare for this second wave of the virus,” added Grand Chief Daniels. “Instead of being adequately prepared, we are now bearing witness to the tragic loss of life and system collapse after years of so-called reorganization and red tape reduction.”
Today, the province announced that it will finally reactivate its incident command structure, to help “provide clear direction and ensure co-ordinated efforts are put in place to address the situation.” This is another example of how the Manitoba government is failing to keep First Nations and all Manitobans safe. The command structure was deactivated months ago, and it has taken the province until now to reactivate it, despite the alarming increases in cases which began many weeks ago.
As of October 31, 2020, 26 First Nation communities across Canada have reported two or more active cases with 17 of them located in Manitoba. There were 516 active cases in the province among First Nation people, 171 of them on reserve “If the province’s system is on the verge of collapse, imagine what that could mean for First Nation’s health care resources,” remarked Grand Chief Daniels. “Thanks to centuries of colonization, we have been dealing with an infrastructure backlog for generations. Add to that the challenges of a global pandemic and you have a recipe for disaster.”
Along with a call for improved transparency, action and accountability from the province, SCO is calling on the federal government to fast track the release of $200 million in recently announced funding to provide support to First Nations. That money will be immediately used to help build critical infrastructure including badly needed isolation units as well as upgrades for health, social, and educational facilities.