Kelvin Kotchilea said the NDP wants to mobilize creative solutions to infrastructure, jobs and housing quickly and wants to lead by “listening,” guided by communities across the territories.
As the New Democratic Party candidate for the Member of Parliament seat in the Northwest Territories, Kotchilea has spent nearly 15 years working in management roles at the GNWT, including with the department of Environment and Climate Change.
Kotchilea, who is from Behchokǫ̀, first ran in the territorial election in 2021, for the Monfwi riding. Later that same year, he ran for the MP seat for N.W.T. and came very close to winning in the last federal election in 2021.
A few weeks ago, Kotchilea announced his campaign and responded to questions True North FM had asked him along with all the MP Candidates.
Kotchilea recently spoke with True North FM about his leadership vision as the New Democratic Party’s MP candidate for NWT.
He talked about some of the ways healthcare, infrastructure, housing, wellness, addiction, and issues of affordability and costs of living are interconnected and compounded across the territories.
“Across my conversations with people here in Yellowknife, as well as in Behchokǫ̀, the YKDFN and the South Slave communities, some of the Dehcho communities and the Sahtu communities, what I’m hearing that’s very common and repeated is healthcare, infrastructure, housing, wellness and addiction, as well as affordability with regards to the high cost of living.”
Kotchilea said he is hearing people want to see improvements to infrastructure, an issue closely tied to rising costs of living, especially for those in more remote communities.
“Let’s say if I go to the Sahtu, the communities are wanting the Mackenzie Valley Highway due to the barge cancellation in 2023 and its unpredictability of operation. That put a burden on all the communities with regard to the goods and supplies that came in through the winter road. So some people were paying $5 a litre for heating fuel in October of 2024. And their heating bill was two times the cost of their mortgage. That’s kind of an extreme scenario but everyone is feeling the burden of high grocery prices. And again, everything increased across the board with regards to insurance, power, property taxes, day-to-day expenses.”
To help tackle housing shortages, Kotchilea said he wants to mobilize creative solutions quickly.
“There’s going to be some measures where we’re going to have to bring in manufactured homes or pre-built homes so that we can have something set up in the communities ASAP. And I also want to have a program that tackles trades in our communities. So having kind of a dual approach where you do have manufactured homes, so you can set it up with ease so that we can get people in homes. At the same time, I would like to do projects that are stick built and have the ability for community members to get into trades (like) carpentry, plumbing, electrical, construction and technician.”
Kotchilea reflected on a growing urgency for people to work together to combat the threats of forest fires and the impacts of climate change
He has heard from many people who are concerned about climate change. He explained he wants to see more responsibility on the part of big business to address the environmental damages and impacts of industry.
Kotchilea pointed out that in N.W.T, with with its population of about 45,000 people, the carbon footprint of individuals and families is minimal compared to southern Canada.
He said he doesn’t want individuals and families to pay the damages associated with things like mine clean-up. Kotchileahe said he believes the federal government should hold big business more accountable.
“To have something in place where if (companies) want to do a lot of mining exploration, they have to set more money aside for not only a mine cleanup, but even climate change impacts into the future.”
Kotchilea said he wants the government to ensure that people and families are protected from price gouging.
When it comes to infrastructure and development, Kotchilea said he envisions a balance between industry and protecting the natural world, benefiting all people and communities of the region.
“A lot of our Indigenous organizations, we still have three big organizations that want to finalize their land claim, which is the Dehcho , Akaitcho and Métis. And by having it completed, it gives the ability for mining companies as well as junior companies that are doing exploration in the area, to have a map of areas that are available for development: areas that are going to be traditionally used; and areas that are going to be protected; as well as Crown lands. So by not having these land claim negotiations completed, it puts a big question mark, especially in the Slave geological area. A lot of Indigenous groups understand that we do need some more mining and oil exploration happening in our territory
Kotchilea said he believes that some mining and oil exploration is necessary in order to create employment for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.
“I always have said that we’re, again, we’re only 45,000 people across the North, and there’s no reason why we can’t all thrive and prosper together.”
Kotchilea said he believes Arctic security is an important issue that calls for building infrastructure to ensure communities have access to resources and each other.
“It’s very worrisome knowing how dedicated Russia and China have gotten with regards to the Arctic, especially regarding having it as a trade route for barges. They’re dedicating a lot of resources and money to studying the Arctic and the Mackenzie Valley Highway,
When it comes to infrastructure and development, Kotchilea said he wants to see not only projects like the Mackenzie Valley Highway project come to fruition but also projects that tackle big issues in smaller communities.
“A lot of the communities have aging infrastructure across the 33 communities. So a good example would be a water treatment plant. If any of the water treatment plants in any of the communities were to be condemned or for whatever reason, they need to build a new water treatment plant. We’re talking millions of dollars that none of these communities have and there’s no way to tax the people within the community to make up for a major project like that. So I understand that a lot of the municipalities, towns, and religious government organizations definitely need more federal government support with regards to their infrastructure, just to provide the basic necessities of services. I’d say from what I’ve been hearing from communities that’s another infrastructure importance to them outside of major projects like the Mackenzie Valley Highway, Slave Geological Corridor, and then as well as our hydro, like the Talston, the Snare, Bluefish, and there is some potential hydro like the Bear River that is being studied.”
Kotchile said to face challenges, the people of the territories will have to plan for the future. “When you make decisions, it’s like planting a seed. You always have to ensure that you’re giving it it’s nutrients and its water to see the projects fully complete.
On the part of leadership, it begins with “listening” and working towards “unity” for the people and communities of the North, said Kotchilea.
“When it comes to priorities, it’s not up to me to tell Ottawa what the priorities are. I have to hear from each of the communities in each of the regions and ensuring that we’re all in agreement when it comes to what is important to us as a whole. And then being united in that voice of going to Ottawa. So every time that we have Indigenous governments or even our territorial leaders wanting to advocate or lobby for additional federal funding support or changing federal policy or any Bills that go through the House of Commons, we have to work together for the fact that we have only one Member of Parliament. It’s very unfair that we have 1.1 million square kilometres of land mass, the third largest (among all) the territories and provinces in Canada and have a small population of 45,000 people. It is very difficult in that aspect but if we are united and we all have a common voice we can accomplish so much, faster.”
“With this federal election. I am worried about what the future looks like. We are in 2025 and it doesn’t feel like anything has gotten easier,” he said.
Kotchilea said he believes that things can change if people communicate and work together.
“I want to be able to reassure people that we can find areas to improve and I think having a common voice and listening to people and working with people is so important. Having a Member of Parliament who has a voice is important as well, because I got the blessing from the New Democratic Party, carrying a platform that they’re going to help push through the House, and I’m very appreciative of that.”
