Ontario bands take over in 2017

Motion seeks to remove longtime head of Southern Chiefs’ Organization due to ‘behaviour’ concerns

For the second time in a year, the leadership of Southern Chiefs’ Organization Grand Chief Jerry Daniels is being called into question.

A motion obtained by the Free Press calls “immediately” for a special summit of the 33 SCO chiefs to consider removing Daniels, who’s been at the helm since 2017.

The Aug. 17 motion, put forward by Lake Manitoba First Nation Chief Cornell McLean and Bloodvein First Nation Chief Lisa Young, cites concerns about “governance, leadership, accountability, transparency, organizational decision-making and confidence of member Nations in the current leadership of the organization.”

McLean would not provide specific examples Wednesday but said the “behaviour” of Daniels is a concern.

Bisons begin reshaping herd

The Manitoba Bisons turned the page on a storied chapter of the football program on the sidelines last season. This year, another new era dawns on the field.

With quarterback Jackson Tachinski graduated, third-year pivot Cole Anseeuw will take the reins of a younger Bisons offence as it figures out who its core group of playmakers are for the foreseeable future.

“It’s not just (Tachinski),” said head coach Stan Pierre, who enters his second year at the program’s helm. “I think he’s probably the face of this era, but we’re also losing essentially all our offensive backfield production from last year. So that’s really where the challenge lies for us.”

Besides the quarterback, the Bisons also graduated their centre, top two running backs and three of their top receivers. There’s fewer turnovers on defence, but young players will need to step up in the first and third level, as two starting linemen and three defensive backs have left the program.

Premier, mayor voice support for decision to end police officers’ OT retail-security shifts

Premier Wab Kinew and Mayor Scott Gillingham are backing the police chief’s decision to end the option for officers to work overtime shifts providing security at retail stores.

Doctor pays $500K to revamp courtyard at care home where he works

Fifty years after Dr. Pravinsagar Mehta began caring for residents at Actionmarguerite, a courtyard he had long watched deteriorate is getting a new life after he and his wife committed $500,000 to its redevelopment and long-term maintenance.

The renewed courtyard at Actionmarguerite St. Boniface on Despins Street will officially open Friday, giving its 299 residents an accessible place to spend time outside.

When Mehta, now 80, began working at St. Boniface Home in 1976, the new courtyard reminded him of a park near his childhood home in Uganda — one of the highlights of his upbringing.

“I said, ‘Wow, isn’t it amazing that I can go out, sit outside, and relax there?’” Mehta recalled.