The New Democrats are questioning why the provincial government has appointed a man to the Board of Northlands College who has several assaults and uttering threats convictions and who was sentenced last month for domestic assault.
On November first, Vince Natomagan, along with eight others were appointed to the Board on the recommendation of Advanced Education Minister Tina Beaudry-Mellor through an Order-In-Council.
“We have the highest rates of domestic violence in the country. How did the Minister of Advanced Education miss this before approving the appointment? And what message does this send to domestic violence survivors in our province?” NDP MLA Carla Beck said Tuesday.
Natomagan has 12 criminal conviction’s dating to 1989 for assault. His most recent conviction came on November 14 after being found guilty of assault against a woman in Pinehouse in August. He was also charged with uttering a death threat against that same woman.
Natomagan was given a nine month community service sentence and parole conditions.
Beaudry-Mellor says she was unaware of Natomagen’s criminal past saying she was shocked to hear the allegations on the floor of the Legislative Assembly.
“Well, I’m horrified, especially in the north where we have really high rates of domestic violence and high rates of inter-personal violence it’s the wrong message to send. So, to say I’m horrified would be an understatement,” Beaudry-Mellor explained.
Beaudry-Mellor says if the allegations against Natomagen are true, he will be removed from the Board immediately.
She says the vetting process for boards will need to be strengthened to include criminal backgrounds. “To be frank, I had felt our vetting processes were quite thorough. It takes a long time for individuals to come forward and be appointed to any board. Obviously we will have to check and re-check and triple check so that this never happens again.”
(PHOTO: Vince Natomagan. MBC file.)