Phil Fontaine, shown here at the July 3 state funeral of former governor general Romeo LeBlanc, has served three terms as national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, beginning in 1997, 2003 and 2006. (Andrew Vaughan/Canadian Press)

On the eve of the vote to choose a new leader of the Assembly of First Nations, departing National Chief Phil Fontaine says his successor must continue to look for ways to end the "onerous burden" of poverty among aboriginal Canadians.

The assembly's annual general meeting opened in Calgary on Tuesday, with a vote to elect a new national chief to take place Wednesday morning.

Fontaine, who announced in early June he would not seek re-election, said Canada's Aboriginal Peoples should be proud of the contribution they've made to society. There are roughly 20,000 aboriginal-owned and managed small businesses, 30,000 aboriginal students enrolled in universities and about 65 aboriginal judges, he said.

However, extreme poverty in First Nations communities will dominate the new leader's agenda, said Fontaine, who led the assembly for nine years.

"The person that comes in is going to have to continue to press our case in terms of Canada's single most important social-justice issue, and that's First Nations poverty. Our people are simply too poor," Fontaine said. "It's such an onerous burden."

The outbreak of swine flu, which has hit aboriginal communities hard, is an "unacceptable" symptom of such poverty, he said. The H1N1 influenza strain blamed for at least 45 deaths across Canada has taken a disproportionate hold on reserves.

"The H1N1 flu, that’s a scary situation and that’s simply to do with poverty, severe overcrowding and no access to safe drinking water and poor access to quality health care," Fontaine said. "It’s simply unacceptable."

'Post apology era'

Fontaine said the assembly's successes have been good for aboriginal Canadians and the entire country.

"The best thing we ever did was the residential school settlement agreement, the apology — an historic moment for us," said Fontaine, adding that the creation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission is also high on his list.

"The apology was a special moment, not just for First Nations and survivors but for the entire country. Now with the Truth and Reconciliation [Commission] in place, we are going to be able to do some important work in establishing the kind of relationship that we need to have."

Fontaine said Canada is moving into the "post apology era" toward reconciliation.

"It’s about eradicating First Nations poverty and about teaching the true history of Canada in our schools, those are very important," he said.

Fontaine criticized the federal government's recently announced plan to "reward excellence" when it comes to distribution of new spending for aboriginal communities by funding First Nations groups that have shown past success and future potential.

He said it's unfair to "brand" First Nations leadership as unaccountable.

"We’ve had to contend with that and it’s been a huge struggle because every time we go before the government for fair treatment, we’re told, well, if you can convince us that you’re prepared to be more accountable, we’ll consider giving you more money," he said.

Fontaine said he's not ready to kick back and relax when the new leader is elected.

"It's time for someone else to take on the responsibilities.… Not that I'm going to disappear from the scene, it’s just I won’t be national chief," he said.

639 chiefs to vote

Five candidates are vying to become the new leader:

• Shawn Atleo, British Columbia businessman.
• Bill Wilson, British Columbia land claims treaty negotiator.
• John Beaucage, Ontario economist.
• Perry Bellegarde, Saskatchewan's Little Black Bear First Nation councillor.
• Terrance Nelson, Manitoba author and consultant.

Rick Simon, the AFN's regional chief of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, said the vote will be a "turning point" in First Nations politics. He says he doesn't agree with some of the candidates who say the assembly needs to be reformed.

"If the assembly was in as bad condition as it was, you wouldn’t have seen all the accomplishments we made over the last year," he said.

"I think a lot of the candidates that are saying that, they’re going to wear it in front of the chiefs because they really believe that we’ve accomplished a lot over the last couple years."

Some 639 chiefs are eligible to vote for the new leader. The ballots are due to be cast on Wednesday.

Each chief has one vote and must register in person or by proxy. The winner needs 60 per cent of ballots cast to take the three-year term.

The newly elected national chief will address delegates on Thursday morning.

With files from The Canadian Press