DAWSON CITY – History was made early Thursday afternoon in the former legislative chambers on the second floor of the Dawson City Museum.

Sandy Silver was sworn in as the MLA for the Klondike riding.

The second-term MLA will be sworn in as premier with the rest of his Liberal caucus in a ceremony in Whitehorse on Saturday.

While a premier has been sworn in here before (see sidebar below), this is the first time an elected MLA has been sworn in here. That fact was noted by Commissioner Doug Phillips in his opening remarks.

This may seem odd, but in the days when Dawson was the territory’s capital, the commissioner was the person in charge of the government, and only some of his executive committee members were elected.

There was no such thing as a government leader or a premier, and there were no political parties involved in the territory’s governance.

Other firsts on Thursday included the involvement of the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation in the ceremony.

Events began shortly after noon, with the commissioner calling Silver to the podium at the front of the chamber.

Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in elder Ronald Johnson (often called the Mayor of Moosehide) delivered what he described as an “every day use prayer – a prayer for everybody.”

It included special blessings, mentioning “Sandy Silver and his Liberal team, who will lead the Yukon people in a positive and faithful manner….”

Phillips introduced Chief Roberta Joseph. In brief remarks, she spoke to the honour it was to be at this momentous event.

“It’s momentous for two reasons. To my recollection, it is the first time we have been invited to participate in this event. We appreciate the opportunity to participate along with the greater Dawson community,” the chief said.

“The second reason is, not only do we have an MLA for this region, but history has been made for this region by electing a premier.

“It is a unique privilege to have premiers elected in rural communities. The TH community and our community of Dawson, is one of the rare jewels of the Yukon.

“As a community working together, we’re always innovative in our population’s creations, and having the opportunity to elect a premier can be added to the list of innovations of the Klondike region.”

The Hän Singers then performed the “Welcome Song” to lead into the formal swearing. Later, they would close with the “Flag Song”.

Phillips, who loves a good story, could not resist speculating on how the day might have gone if the Air North flight had been unable to land Thursday morning, as sometimes occurs.

He also recalled being an MLA in this building in 1998, when the legislature sat here for a day to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of the Yukon. (Phillips also officiated in an event here in 2011, as outlined in the sidebar.)

Following these anecdotes, for which there was much laughter and appreciation, the serious portion of the event began.

As preamble, Phillips noted that it has been his experience that, aside from the responsibilities of the office to uphold the oaths and the decorum of the chamber, there are personal issues, especially affecting the members’ families, which may arise.

MLAs have an opportunity to speak out on issues, and in doing so, “you sometimes don’t please everybody.

“There are some people that don’t like what you’re doing, and there will be criticism. Sometimes the criticism can be fair; sometimes it’s not so fair.”

Elected members can, of course, defend their views when they are criticized, “but there are those, close to you, that can’t, and that’s your family. I speak from experience.

“You have to take care of your family as an elected member. They are proud of you when you get elected, but they feel the same pain when you are criticized by people, whether fair or unfair. So take care of your family. I urge you to do that,” Phillips advised.

“As you move forward in the next year, you know that the public scrutiny will be close and unrelenting. I’ll ask you to be fair, open, and, above all, to be honest and truthful.”

The 47-year-old premier-designate took the artifact Bible in hand to swear the oaths.

“I, Sandy Silver, do swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

“I, Sandy Silver, do solemnly and sincerely promise and swear that I will duly and faithfully, and to the best of my skills and knowledge, execute the powers and trust reposed in me as a member of the Yukon Legislative Assembly, so help me God.”

He and Phillips signed the documents under the watchful eye of Floyd McCormack, the clerk of the Yukon legislature.

Formalities concluded, the packed gallery adjourned to the coffee shop on the first floor, where sandwiches and snacks for a light lunch were available.

Most gathered in the audio-visual theatre room to hear a brief pre-recorded video address by Yukon MP Larry Bagnell.

“Sandy, from Parliament Hill, I would like to congratulate you on your re-election as MLA for the Klondike and as premier elect,” the MP said.

“You’ve done a great job in your constituency; the people of Dawson have given you an ‘A’ rating and put you back in the House. It bodes well for a great future for Dawson City, and for the Klondike.

“I look forward to working with you and the people of Dawson. It’s such a great community, part of the heart and inspiration of what it means to be Yukon.

“You are so fortunate to be the MLA for that great community, and they are fortunate to have a person that is so dedicated to the people of Dawson.

“Have a great celebration, everyone. This is a great day.”

Commenting on the events, Phillips emphasized the number of firsts he was tallying: the first swearing-in of an MLA in Dawson, and the fact that the same person will be sworn in as premier tomorrow.

Silver explained the choice that had been made to have his ceremony here.

“We wanted to make a commitment to all communities, that all communities matter, so it’s symbolic for us to come up here to Dawson to have the swearing-in,” he said.

“When I went door-to-door in Dawson, I was so pleased for what I was hearing back when campaigning that it would be great for the Klondike MLA to be premier.

“What we heard from the door was that it would be great for all the rural communities. What resonated with me was that Klondike was basically saying, ‘look, this isn’t just about Dawson,’ getting away from this urban versus rural concept.

“Every place is distinct, including Whitehorse, including Dawson, including Pelly.

“I wanted to really make that commitment that it’s about all the communities.”

The cabinet will start to be sworn in at approximately 2 p.m. Saturday in the Yukon Government Main Administration building foyer in Whitehorse. Silver’s colleagues will begin to be sworn in as MLAs at 11 a.m. in the legislative chamber, an event that’s also open to the public.

A note on historical firsts

DAWSON CITY – In 2011, now-outgoing Premier Darrell Pasloski was sworn in as premier by Commissioner Doug Phillips.

That happened in the Old Territorial Administration Building at a special ceremony held on June 11. That date happened to coincide with the timing of that year’s Commissioner’s Tea and Ball.

At the time, Pasloski had just won the Yukon Party leadership contest, and was not yet a sitting MLA.

While he took over the office and a number of portfolios, he could not have sat in the legislature.

But that was not problematic, since it had adjourned for the summer and only reconvened in the fall of 2011, long enough to drop the writ for that year’s territorial election. – Dan Davidson