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OTTAWA — An elderly B.C. First Nations chief and his ex-wife, along with one of their sons and a grandson, received more than $4.1-million in remuneration over the past four years.

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Shuswap First Nation Chief Paul Sam, 80, gets a tax-free salary that has averaged $264,000 over that period to run a tiny reserve near Invermere, a resort community near the Alberta border.

The Shuswap have 267 members, of whom just 87 live on the reserve.

His son, Dean Martin, is doing even better, with an average annual annual salary of $536,000 over the period running a band corporation that operates various businesses on and near the reserve.

The figures were provided this week to The Vancouver Sun by disgruntled Shuswap members who are challenging in next month’s election a family that has ruled for more than three decades.

A dissident councillor, who earns $57,700 annually, said she was unaware until recently that Chief Sam and the only other councillor, ex-wife Alice Sam, 82, were earning such big salaries.

“We had no idea. We are absolutely disgusted,” Barbara Cote said Thursday while vowing to reform band finances if she’s successful in the election.

Chief Sam and his former wife both reported salaries of $202,000, their lowest in the four years. The chief’s top salary was just under $300,000 in 2010-11, while the top year for Alice Sam was 2011-12 when she earned $242,000.