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Candidate hopes to bring Aboriginal perspective to council

Oct 13, 2016 | 12:00 PM

The only First Nations council candidate in North Battleford’s municipal election believes the city’s diversity should be used as an opportunity for community building.

Herman Bugler Jr. is from Red Pheasant First Nation but went to school in North Battleford during his childhood. Now a resident of the city, Bugler Jr. is also the human resource manager at the Living Sky School Division. He has no previous political experience but has always been involved in the community.

Bugler Jr. said his main focus is bringing the community together to help the city prosper.

“Basically my platform is, we have a better future that’s shared,” Bugler Jr. said. “We can’t stick with the status quo. We need to change the way we do things. We have such a wide range of demographics. We have to promote new Canadians and the businesses they bring, and First Nation Entrepreneurs.”

Because of the range of demographics, Bugler Jr. wants more First Nation and immigrant involvement on boards and city councils to have their voices heard. As the only First Nations candidate he said it is important to have Aboriginal representation on city council.

“I bring a certain perspective no other candidate can,” Bugler Jr. said. “Even though it was a short time, I still spent time in a residential school. No other candidate can say that. They might know about it, but they can’t bring that perspective.”

Bugler Jr. said he is conflicted about being the only First Nation’s candidate. On one hand he doesn’t have to compete for the Aboriginal vote. On the other hand, he would like to see more involvement from the First Nation community. He is worried the lack of candidates is an indication the Aboriginal community isn’t engaged.

The hot button issue this election is crime. Bugler Jr. said he wants to stop focusing on punishment and start on preventative measures.

“There is a lot of fear in the city right now,” Bugler Jr. said. “I think we have to break down the stereotypes. We only ever hear about the negative things First Nations do. When we talk about preventative measures, one step is breaking down the fear. There are a lot of people doing great things that should be celebrated.”

The North Battleford municipal elections will be held Oct. 26.

 

Greg Higgins is battlefordsNOW’s city municipal affairs and health reporter. He can be reached at ghiggins@jpbg.ca or tweet him @realgreghiggins.