The death of a revenue source 

Although we hate to reuse certain phrases, “one of the worst-kept secrets” has popped up too often this year with the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK).

First, it was the Indigenous Services Canada building move, a secret happening we reported on and was only confirmed by the MCK months later; now it’s the Mohawk Online Limited (MOL) agreement with Entain coming to an end, a story we knew about and were working on before it came out publicly at the Grand Chiefs Debate on K1037, but was met by Council chiefs with a terse “no comment.”

Well, as of last week, it’s official. MOL’s key partner walked away, and it’s done.

Besides that, former MOL CEO Dean Montour, who sued current grand chief Cody Diabo (who was a little chief at the time) for defamation in March, and the MCK for wrongful dismissal, was countersued because of his comments on MOL, made after the MCK had already revealed it publicly on air but not in a press release.

Add the Magic Palace lawsuit to that list and there are three more “worst-kept secrets” from the MCK. The public knows about these issues thanks to our reporting, but the MCK has not commented on any lawsuit publicly at this time.

So, here’s the issue we have with it all.

First, MOL wasn’t perfect, but it meant money for the community. Maybe the imperfect part was that the MCK was the only shareholder and, despite having a board of directors to run its operations, MOL was under the Council’s thumb.

It was like MCK’s dirty little secret, but it was a public entity. It was a strange ride.

And yes, we know many in the community didn’t understand MOL’s importance and are happy to see it gone, but it still leaves money on the table, and for a local government to walk away from a revenue source because they were bad businesspeople, well that doesn’t bode well for future financial opportunities.

It’s important to emphasize just how much money was left on the table. Two years of attrition were to lead to many years or prosperity, according to an Entain proposal to MOL, but the MCK balked and lost it all due to incompetence. And then Entain walked.

Millions of dollars for future years, potentially tens of millions over a longer period. That’s a lot of money.

When it comes to gaming, the government's infringement on Kahnawake's sovereignty is very real, as usual, and we do hope the Senate bill currently in the works clarifies Canada's acknowledgment of our inherent gaming rights. But have we really gotten a satisfying response for why millions of dollars a year serving customers around the globe collapsed into zero revenue because of a regulatory scheme in Ontario?

Will MOL somehow miraculously continue, and a new partner be found, as MCK grand chief Cody Diabo suggested in last week’s article?

Shouldn’t the decision to terminate this type of partnership have been brought to the people, you know, the ones who are supposed to benefit from this?

Whatever happens, it’s a clear case of major issues being flippantly decided by a minority, with an outcome that should concern everyone.

Transparency was a word so many candidates rode into the MCK on, yet the meaning of the word has been lost.

What should you know as a community member about Council dealings? Some talks in the early stages are held from the public for a time, we get that; while some, but certainly not all, have to be confidential, but what about the things you should know?

What about the things that are unfairly labelled confidential in Council meetings, meant to block people from knowing and asking questions, meant to keep the media from uncovering more information and asking questions you need to know?

What if the chiefs brought the ISC move or the MOL-Entain termination to your attention early, would it make a difference? Do you care one way or the other? Is our reporting worth its weight in ink, as we fight for you, the people?

We think a free press that holds leadership accountable will always be worth it, and with your need to know comes our push to find out.

How many stories would never have been known at all without some good old-fashioned journalism?

And there are many more to uncover.

Steve Bonspiel 

The Eastern Door