The Untouchables: Why It’s Time to Hold Corrupt Chiefs Accountable

The Untouchables: Why It’s Time to Hold Corrupt Chiefs Accountable

They speak for the people.
They claim ancestral authority.
They sign agreements in your name.
Yet—too many live like kings while their communities suffer like serfs.
Let us speak plainly.

Not all chiefs are corrupt. But in far too many corners of this country, power has become a fortress, not a responsibility. Millions in federal funds vanish each year into “consulting fees,” “administration costs,” and shell organizations—while boil-water advisories linger, addictions rise, and youth suicide remains epidemic.

This isn’t reconciliation.

It’s robbery in regalia.

The Evidence: Corruption in Our Communities
Alexander First Nation: An audit revealed $2.1 million in unexplained payments to former Chief Herbert Arcand and staff, including funds used for personal vacations and casinos.

Glooscap First Nation: Band councillors earned between $210,000 and $260,000 annually, with one councillor earning nearly $1 million in a single fiscal year. Additionally, a staff member was convicted of stealing over $160,000 from a community-owned business.

Sagkeeng First Nation: The Virginia Fontaine Addictions Foundation, located on the reserve, was involved in a massive fraud and kickback scheme, resulting in federal officials pleading guilty and the director being sentenced to three years in prison.

Attawapiskat First Nation: A federal audit found a lack of documentation for millions of dollars spent between 2005 and 2011, raising concerns about financial mismanagement under Chief Theresa Spence’s leadership.

Where Are the Watchdogs?
The federal government claims to support Indigenous sovereignty—but refuses to enforce basic accountability. Why? Because corruption serves Ottawa’s interests. A chief who steals from his people is easy to control. A leader who enriches himself is unlikely to challenge the Crown.

But that doesn’t mean the people are powerless.

What the People Can Do
1. Demand Financial Transparency — Enforce the First Nations Financial Transparency Act (FNFTA)
The FNFTA requires First Nations to publish audited financial statements and schedules of remuneration and expenses for chiefs and councillors. Community members can request these documents and, if necessary, seek court orders to obtain them.

2. Organize Grassroots Councils
Establish community-led governance groups independent of the band council. Hold open forums, publish findings, and build a local resistance of elders, workers, and youth who refuse to be silenced.

3. Leverage Social Media and Independent Media
Mainstream media may avoid exposing corrupt chiefs, but social media doesn’t need permission. Publish documents, expose shady contracts, and let the people see what’s been hidden.

4. Demand Elections and Leadership Reviews
Review your band’s custom election code or Indian Act system. Demand term limits, recall options, and the right to audit.

5. Align With Reformers, Not Federal Puppets
Partner with chiefs who live humbly and fight for clean water, jobs, and land rights. Build coalitions that cross reserve boundaries.

The Laws Are There—Use Them
First Nations Financial Transparency Act (FNFTA): Empowers community members to access financial information and seek legal remedies for non-compliance.

Criminal Code of Canada: Applies to fraud, misappropriation, and breach of trust—even on reserves.

Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act: Allows whistleblowers to file complaints against federal employees complicit in corruption.

But no law is useful without courage.

The Real Threat to the System? An Awakened People.
Ottawa doesn’t fear a protest.

It doesn’t fear a petition.

It fears a people who understand their rights—and act without asking permission.

When Indigenous citizens begin auditing their own leadership, building parallel councils, and naming the corruption—Ottawa loses its middlemen.

And that is when true sovereignty begins.

A Final Word to the People
You were not born to be ruled by elites in band offices any more than by bureaucrats in Ottawa. Your land is sacred. Your dignity is priceless. And your silence is not consent.

Stand up. Speak out. Audit everything.
The days of untouchable chiefs must end.

Because leadership isn’t about bloodlines or titles—it’s about service. And anyone who profits while their people starve is not a chief.

They are a traitor.

—The Iron Quill

For truth. For justice. For the people they forgot.