NAABIK’IYATI COMMITTEE IS BACK TO DEBATE ON MAIN LEGISLATION 0006-17, WHICH IS TO SUPPORT COMMUNICATIONS WITH UNIONS TO KEEP NGS AND PEABODY KAYENTA MINE OPERATING PAST 2019.
DELEGATE KEE ALLEN BEGAY questions Peabody Coal representative about why Peabody Coal charges Navajo people for coal when coal belongs to Navajo people. People are questioning why Navajo Council not doing more for people.
CORRECTION – JARVIS WILLIAMS IS A PEABODY COAL REPRESENTATIVE AND NOT NGS REPRESENTATIVE.
DELEGATE KEE ALEN BEGAY asks why group of workers have to come to Council with legislation 0006-17. There has to some committee or focal group that will be communicating with UMWA and IBEW and coalition. Intent is to keep NGS open based on 0006-17. when i go back to my communities i want to be able to explain what the council did regarding 0006-17. current media makes up these issues at the local level. how do i respond to people who oppose and support? for me, i’m only asking council to be part of communication process with unions to keep NGS and coal mine operating past 2019.
DELEGATE LEONARD TSOSIE says NGS will close and i say that because i have been at meeteing and i have not heard any group stand up and step forward and say i will keep NGS open. and why did this happen? it is because of what chairman nakai and that council negotiated with NGS owners and Peabody and so NGS owners and Peabody didn’t pay a fair price to Navajo nation. and when this council made NGS pay $9M, they took off in the dark and built gas plants. and then SALT RIVER PROJECT AND OTHER OWNERS of NGS came to us to re-negotiate NGS lease. and we thought we were negotiating in good faith but they ran off in the dark to build gas plants which made the power generated by NGS more expensive than gas generated power. this nation blessed by creator with bountiful natural resources. yes, white man came in and snookered nation into bad contracts. but as demand better returns, which we did with ngs, then NGS wouldn’t pay. and closure of NGS and coal mine was undermioned by Navajos who are paid by sierra club. union should call out Dine CARE and others for opposing NGS, fracking. and Navajo Department of Justice treating Navajo Transitional Energy like strangers and not sharing info. if allow that continue then NTEC ve next victim. NDOJ and attorney general needs to stop saying that information attorney client info. Those that leave NGS and Peabody will move to Four Corners. I predict that thousands of workers will lose their jobs. Salt River Pojrect sitting in coll tower with power from gas and they are going to cut line from NGS. I will vote yes to support workers’ cause. To president begaye we need to be honest with people about where negotiations at instead of giving false hope which give more damage. they never get ready for what coming down. i wish you well. you need to tell Navajo environmentalists, look at what you are causing. we still have gas and helium. i would strongly recommend after coalition formed to go visit president trump cuz he said he would save coal jobs.
