Constitutional Development & Amendment Committee (CDAC) Call for Nominations

Constitutional Development and Amendment Committee (CDAC)

Terms of Reference & Launch

Timelines and Nomination Process

The Constitutional Development and Amendment Committee (CDAC) was called into being through a motion by the MoCreebec Council on May 21, 2015. The Committee will function as a Standing Committee for which members will be nominated and appointed through the following process:

• May 25, 2015: Launch of Nomination Process
• June 10, 2015: Final day for receiving Nominations
• June 15-16, 2015: Interviews and Selection Process for Nominations
• June 17, 2015: Start of Committee Business – Commissioning of First Report to table Recommendations to the MoCreebec Council on Process for Selection/Appointment of Chief & Deputy Chief of the MoCreebec (Eeyoud) Council of the Cree Nation.
• July 17, 2015: Due Date for the 1^st CDAC Report to be tabled to the MoCreebec Council
• July 26, 2015: Deadline for Process of Selecting/Appointing of Chief & Deputy Chief of the MoCreebec (Eeyoud) Council of the Cree Nation, as per MoCreebec Eeyoud Bylaws.

Ongoing Role & Responsibilities

The CDAC will continue to engage in Membership and Clan Council functions following the initial report, as per the ToR stated below. The CDAC will be called upon to study issues and table reports as commissioned by the MoCreebec Council from time to time. The maximum number of reports commissioned will be one per quarter (i.e. four per year).

Membership and Clan Council responsibilities will be ongoing throughout the year and members of the Committee are expected to carry out their functions with professionalism, in good faith, and according to the guiding principles outlined in the MoCreebec Constitutional Framework. All members of the CDAC must become familiar with both the Constitution and Bylaw documents. These documents are paramount for carrying out their work as a Standing Committee and for serving the MoCreebec community.

Nominations

Registered members of MoCreebec are eligible to become members of the CDAC. In order to be nominated as a member of the Committee one needs signatures from three other registered members of the MoCreebec community. In order to put forward a nomination the signatures must appear on the nomination form. Please send this nomination form to the attention of the Senior Development Officer at MoCreebec:

Jean Pierre Chabot, Senior Development Officer
MoCreebec (Eeyoud) Council of the Cree Nation 
chabot.jeanpierre@gmail.com 
62 Hospital Drive 
Fax: 705-658-4487

If you have any questions or would like to confirm receipt of a nomination form, please feel free to contact the Senior Development Officer at 705-658-4769 ext. 2008.

Nomination Forms

Nomination forms can be obtained at the MoCreebec Office's front desk or by emailing the SDO at chabot.jeanpierre@gmail.com and requesting a copy be sent by email. You can also access the form and further information from MoCreebec's Official Website or by following the link:

http://www.mocreebec.com/downloads/CDAC/CDAC%20Nomination%20Form%20and%20Terms%20of%20Reference-1.pdf (The form can be found on page 4 of the document in the link)

Mandate

The CDAC is tasked with studying plans to implement and amend the MoCreebec Constitutional Framework. The Committee is also concerned with reviewing membership requests and requests to form a Clan Council, as these pertain to implementation of the Constitution and the newly formulated Bylaw. Registering members under the newly incorporated entity, the MoCreebec Eeyoud, will be important for consolidating the community profile. The CDAC will assume the role of the Membership Committee, contemplated in the 1993 Constitution.

The CDAC is a standing committee. Its activities are triggered by any event calling upon a review of the MoCreebec Constitutional Framework or the further development of policies and procedures that could affect the Constitution or the Bylaws. It is responsible for membership reviews and the Clan family registration process. The CDAC is concerned primarily with the constitutionality of amendments made to the overall Constitutional Framework. Furthermore, the CDAC is tasked with reviewing the voting system as per the Constitutional Framework.

The CDAC is mandated with consulting members of the MoCreebec community as it relates to the issues mentioned above. Members of the CDAC should remain unpolitical in their approach to fulfilling their mandate as committee members. The role of the Committee is to conduct research and consultations, compile the findings and table a report, including recommendations, to Council for consideration. Committee members are also mandated to approve membership registrations based on the criteria set out in the Constitutional Framework. Committee members are called to work in a professional manner.

Formation, Term, and Dissolution

The CDAC has been approved and called into existence by the MoCreebec Council. Nominations for the Committee are received and reviewed by the Senior Development Officer over a one-month period. Any group of three registered MoCreebec members is permitted to nominate a candidate to the Committee. Five candidates are selected by the Senior Development Officer, and confirmed by Council, to sit on the CDAC. These five individuals will serve a term of eighteen (18) months or till the date Council, upon the recommendation of the Senior Development Officer, removes any individual for the following reasons:

1. Not being fully engaged and cooperative in the proceedings and activities of the Committee;
2. Conviction of a criminal offense (during mandate) or significant evidence of serious misconduct;
3. Failing to effectively assume their particular role within the Committee structure; and
4. Engaging in political activities, concerning MoCreebec Eeyoud, deemed inappropriate by Council.

Composition

The CDAC is composed of five members plus the Senior Development Officer (ex-officio member), who functions as the liaison between the Committee and the Council. Each member of the CDAC will have a particular function:

• Chair: acts as the spokesperson for the Committee and directs the Committee’s deliberations 
• Primary Coordinator: coordinates the internal activities of the Committee 
• Secondary Coordinator: coordinates the external (consultation) activities of the Committee 
• Recorder: records notes from meetings of Committee and updates membership database 
• Report Writer: writes the formal reports to be tabled to Council upon request

Activities & Accountabilities

The Committee is permitted to meet, to phone and to email individual members of the community on behalf of the MoCreebec Council. However, the Committee remains directly accountable to the Council and only indirectly accountable to the members of the community. The Committee is permitted to organize meetings but must do so within the scope of the allowable budget for each report. The Committee can also reach out to external parties but must seek approval from at least two members of the Council prior to proceeding with such external communication. Liaising with the Council for approvals to consult external parties (i.e. non-MoCreebec members) can be done through the Senior Development Officer. The Senior Development Officer is also tasked with periodic evaluations of the Committee.

Reports

The Committee is accountable to the Council and therefore must produce final reports within the timeframe set by the Council. The report is to be tabled at a Council meeting and approved. Approval of the report will also mean approval for payment of honorarium to the members of the Committee. The report must include background on the issues, key findings, information about who was consulted and how, and a list of recommendations pertaining to the issue at hand. The report can be presented in the form of a Briefing Note. The Senior Development Officer can assist with reviewing draft reports. The Committee is also responsible for updating Council on new membership requests received and approved.

Communications

The Committee will communicate with the Council through the Senior Development Officer. From time to time, the Chair of the Committee may be called upon by Council to present findings at meetings of the Council. Communications between the members of the Committee and Council are to be considered confidential. Committee business should be conducted in a manner as to assure confidentiality and due process. The Committee is to communicate amongst themselves by email or phone but should not use open social media such as Facebook or Twitter for committee business. Consultations with members of the community may be conducted by phone, email or in-person. Facebook and other social media are not permitted. It may be necessary to record interviews or conversations. Permission must be granted in writing to the Committee to record consultation proceedings. Records must be kept and files stored in a secure location. Files can be stored with the Senior Development Officer.

Call for Artists - Youth that can "Draw to Impress"

The Senior Development Officer (SDO) at MoCreebec is looking for youth to contribute to the Toolkit with their artistic talents. The SDO is looking for 4-5 youth that can "draw to impress" and would not mind spending some time over the summer developing drawings that will go into the final version of the Community Decision-Making Toolkit.

 

The drawings will be etched in pencil to give that black and white look that expresses a traditional feel. The artists will be acknowledged, for their work and talent, in the Toolkit. Moreover, a prize for the best drawing will be given after the final version is finalized.

 

The SDO has a number of images in mind, e.g. a hunter aiming at some geese from a canoe on a creek. It would be great if youth were involved in giving the Toolkit a visual appeal that will also assist with animating some of the key concepts and ideas presented in the Toolkit.

 

Please pass the word on and ask interested youth to get in touch with the SDO by phone (705-658-4769 ext. 2008) or by email (jean-pierre.chabot@mocreebec.com). You can also show your interest by adding a comment to this post and indicating your name and email address.