After the Navajo Nation Council failed to get 16 “Yes” votes to remove Speaker Johnny Naize, Speaker Edmund Yazzie called for a recess. During the recess, Delegates Elmer Begay and Katherine Benally, who opposed Naize’s removal, visited in the Council chamber in Window Rock, Ariz., on Jan. 28, 2014. Photo by Marley Shebala

Weekly schedule of Navajo Council and its standing committees for Jan. 3, 2014, is out and once again in it’s a new format that provides just enough information to the People about their government.

This week’s WEEKLY SCHEDULE is once again in a format that makes me long for the old weekly schedule format that was last seen for the week of JANUARY 13, 2014,. This format, if you’ve clicked on Jan. 13, 2014, listed all the Council’s standing committees, all the Council’s standing committee subcommittees, and all the Council’s Commissions and Boards.

The new format is just information about the Council and its five standing committees. Actually, this week’s schedule also notes that there’s no Navajo-Hopi Land Commission meeting.

Anyway, the week starts off with a meeting today at 10 a.m. in the north conference room of the Navajo Council chamber of the Law and Order Committee, which Delegate Alton Shepherd serve as vice chairperson and Delegate Edmund Yazzie serves as chairperson.

I hope you all have not forgotten that it was Shepherd that sponsored the legislation for the removal of Speaker Naize and the appointment of a new speaker before the Council last week. During the debate over the removal of Naize and the removal of the legislation for the Council to appoint a new speaker, Yazzie served as Speaker Pro Temp. And yes, Naize selected Yazzie to be his pro temp.

I make that reminder because Shepherd had informed the Council that he was going to look into “payments” made by Naize to some of the delegates that started soon after Shepherd introduced Legislation 0003-14, which was for the removal of Naize because he lost his “good standing” due to his criminal charges and Legislation 0011-14, which was for the Council to appoint a new speaker. Under Navajo law, the removal of a speaker must be done by a 2/3 vote of the Council, which would be 16 “Yes” votes. There were 12 “Yes” votes and 11 “No” votes. And so Legislation 0003-14 failed.

And Yazzie ruled Legislation 0011-14 Out of Order and so Yazzie blocked any fair debate and vote by the Council on Legislation 0011-14, which I’m sure definitely made one delegate overjoyed. And that delegate was Katherine Benally. And how do I know that it overjoyed her? Because I witnessed her stand up on the Council floor and yell and shriek during the debate over whether Legislation 0011-14 could be removed from the Council agenda by Yazzie as speaker pro temp or the Council with a 2/3 vote. Benally wanted Legislation 0011-14 off the Council agenda and she accused some of the debates of retaliating against Naize because they “didn’t get the girl.” (SEE my 1-29-14 YouTube video)

On today’s LAW AND ORDER COMMITTEE AGENDA is a Report from the Navajo Nation Office of the Ethics and Rules Director Vernon Roanhorse. And according to the Navajo Nation Special Prosecutors, they have been urging Roanhorse to get moving on Ethics Charges against Naize and other Delegates that have languishing on his desk for several months.

Well, I better get going to the Law and Order Committee meeting where I hope to blog, video tape and take photos.

Peace Out!