CONCHO — Governing members of the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes are at odds over who will manage the tribes' casinos.
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Elders and some members of the tribes' legislature gathered Wednesday to voice their concerns over how Gov. Darrell Flyingman was planning to operate the casinos.
Flyingman asked a judge in April to nullify a contract with Southwest Casino and Hotel Corp. Flyingman claimed that the contract, approved twice by members of the tribal council, was not valid because it was not approved by the tribe's three branches of government and is contrary to the constitution approved last spring.
The contract with Southwest Casino and Hotel Corp. is up on May 19, and Flyingman said the tribes will take over management of the casinos, which include Lucky Star Casino.
Tribal members have been circulating a petition to recall and impeach Flyingman. At the same time, recall petitions have been circulating to impeach members of the legislature. All signatures are due by Monday.
Tribal elder Jerry Levi said he's worried that changes in the way the casino is managed will lead to corruption and benefits for tribal elders will suffer.
Flyingman defended his decision, saying part of Southwest Casino's contract with the tribes included training employees so that one day the tribe would be able to operate the casino itself and not pay management fees.
Tribal elders also accused Flyingman of firing officials who don't agree with his decisions.
In the past few weeks, Flyingman, a retired head of human resources for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, has fired the tribes' attorney general and a judge who upheld the decision to renew a contract with Southwest Casino and Hotel Corp.
Flyingman defended his actions, saying he fired the attorney general for "neglect of duty in handing some Indian child welfare cases.” The judge was given termination papers because he a criminal conviction, and it's against tribal laws for a judge to have a criminal conviction.
