{"id":103418,"date":"2026-04-02T12:51:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T16:51:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/?p=103418"},"modified":"2026-04-02T12:51:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T16:51:10","slug":"james-smith-cree-nation-seeks-answers-on-covid-19-funds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/02\/james-smith-cree-nation-seeks-answers-on-covid-19-funds\/","title":{"rendered":"James Smith Cree Nation seeks answers on COVID-19 funds"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>By Nicole Goldsworthy, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, SaskToday.ca JAMES SMITH CREE NATION \u2014 The chief of James Smith Cree Nation says he is seeking answers and accountability after raising concerns about how COVID-19 funding was handled by the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN). Chief Kirby Constant confirmed Wednesday he sent a formal letter to the FSIN requesting documents and clarification regarding funding tied to the pandemic. \u201cAs chief, I have a responsibility to protect the interests of our nation and to ensure transparency and accountability when our nation\u2019s name is referenced in matters involving public funds,\u201d Constant said in a open letter to members. The request follows a 2025 summary report by Indigenous Services Canada based on a forensic audit conducted by KPMG. The report found the FSIN received&#8230; <\/p>\n<div class=\"pmpro\">\n<div class=\"pmpro_card pmpro_content_message\">\n<div class=\"pmpro_card_content\">This content is for Yearly Subscription, Yearly Subscription &#8211; Corporate, Print Subscription Only, and Canada Print and Online members only.<br \/><a href=\"http:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/wp-login.php?action=register\">Register<\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"pmpro_card_actions pmpro_font-medium\">Already a member? <a href=\"https:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/wp-login.php?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Ftheturtleislandnews.com%2Findex.php%2F2026%2F04%2F02%2Fjames-smith-cree-nation-seeks-answers-on-covid-19-funds%2F\">Log in here<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Nicole Goldsworthy, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, SaskToday.ca JAMES SMITH CREE NATION \u2014 The chief of James Smith Cree Nation says he is seeking answers and accountability after raising concerns about how COVID-19 funding was handled by the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN). Chief Kirby Constant confirmed Wednesday he sent a formal letter to the FSIN requesting documents and clarification regarding funding tied to the pandemic. \u201cAs chief, I have a responsibility to protect the interests of our nation and to ensure transparency and accountability when our nation\u2019s name is referenced in matters involving public funds,\u201d Constant said in a open letter to members. The request follows a 2025 summary report by Indigenous Services Canada based on a forensic audit conducted by KPMG. The report found the FSIN received... <\/p>\n<div class=\"pmpro\"><div class=\"pmpro_card pmpro_content_message\"><div class=\"pmpro_card_content\">This content is for Yearly Subscription, Yearly Subscription - Corporate, Print Subscription Only, and Canada Print and Online members only.<br \/><a href=\"http:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/wp-login.php?action=register\">Register<\/a><\/div><div class=\"pmpro_card_actions pmpro_font-medium\">Already a member? <a href=\"https:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/wp-login.php?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Ftheturtleislandnews.com%2Findex.php%2F2026%2F04%2F02%2Fjames-smith-cree-nation-seeks-answers-on-covid-19-funds%2F\">Log in here<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"author":101363,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-103418","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-national-news","category-ticker","pmpro-level-required","pmpro-level-3","pmpro-level-2","pmpro-level-5","pmpro-level-4","pmpro-level-6","pmpro-level-7","pmpro-no-access"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>James Smith Cree Nation seeks answers on COVID-19 funds - The Turtle Island News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/theturtleislandnews.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/02\/james-smith-cree-nation-seeks-answers-on-covid-19-funds\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"James Smith Cree Nation seeks answers on COVID-19 funds - The Turtle Island News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Nicole Goldsworthy, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, SaskToday.ca JAMES SMITH CREE NATION \u2014 The chief of James Smith Cree Nation says he is seeking answers and accountability after raising concerns about how COVID-19 funding was handled by the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN). Chief Kirby Constant confirmed Wednesday he sent a formal letter to the FSIN requesting documents and clarification regarding funding tied to the pandemic. \u201cAs chief, I have a responsibility to protect the interests of our nation and to ensure transparency and accountability when our nation\u2019s name is referenced in matters involving public funds,\u201d Constant said in a open letter to members. The request follows a 2025 summary report by Indigenous Services Canada based on a forensic audit conducted by KPMG. 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