A letter sent to members of the Kwantlen First Nation on Thursday, May 6 said that a third-party investigator will look into allegations about the Seyem’ Qwantlen businesses.
“Chief and council has received a number of allegations from membership concerning the Seyem’ Qwantlen legal entities that were established to benefit membership,” said the letter, which the Langley Advance Times received from a source wishing to remain anonymous.
There are a number of businesses that operate under the Seyem banner, and it’s unclear from the letter which of them, or how many, are the subject of allegations.
“We take the allegations seriously and are in the process of retaining an independent third-party investigator to review and investigate the allegations and provide us with a report,” the letter said.
The letter said the chief and council plan to be “as transparent as possible” but due to privacy concerns and “in order to maintain the integrity of the investigation, we cannot provide any further comment about the details of the investigation at this time.”
During the past decade, Seyem, formerly known as the Seyem’ Qwantlen Business Group, has grown and established a number of businesses in diverse fields.
Its website currently lists a security firm, a digital design and marketing company, along with construction, janitorial, and traffic control companies.
It also ran the lelem Café in Fort Langley until that was forced to close recently, due to the pandemic.
In 2014, the group received accolades from the B.C. Economic Development Association, which awarded Seyem the community project award for populations less than 20,000. In 2017, the Kwantlen First Nation and the Township of Langley jointly hosted the first Aboriginal Business Match event, aimed at connecting Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal businesses.
READ MORE: Langley-based Kwantlen First Nation big on business
The Langley Advance Times has reached out to the Kwantlen First Nation for further comment on the situation.
There are approximately 300 members of the KFN, with about a quarter of the members living on reserve at McMillan Island just north of Fort Langley.
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