LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Sir – We are deeply concerned about the disarray and disorder which is enveloping the Territory Labor Government – this is an exceedingly dark time for Territory politics.
This is not a time for squabbling – dysfunction of this magnitude is bad for Territorians, bad for the Territory and does nothing to address our financial and crime crisis.
Punishing the only Labor Minister who has had the courage to speak the truth is not only unfair, it is childish.
It has now been confirmed by former Minister Vowles that government spending and waste is out of control. He has exposed they have no plan and Labor have cannibalised him.
At least Ken Vowles had the guts to stand by his convictions and acknowledge Labor has led the Territory into dangerous, unchartered waters.
Also, the Chief Minister’s priorities are questionable – he stays on leave after dropping an economic bombshell, yet cancels his trip to try to shore up his numbers in Caucus.
Michael Gunner has a lot of explaining to do.
Gary Higgins (pictured)
Opposition LeaderÂ
Territory Big Knob Chief Minister Gunner. He sacks his best minister Ken Vowles for just being honest and for telling a very concerned Northern Territory general public about the Territory Labor Party’s current massive over spending and spiralling debt.
God help us because Gunner, Labor and Co certainly won’t.
Beijing has 25 million people with ONE Government. NT is tiny and DOES NOT need a Government.
The Opposition is commenting as an Opposition (understandably) but would have followed the same course of action if in government.
The substandard skill set, proven track record and reputation of persons gaining places in NT Parliament is very much a part of the current government’s problems, as it was with the Giles mob. This is proving once again that the NT as well as its government and funded departments and boards are run by a bunch of unqualified cowboys whose heads are swollen with delusions of grandeur and self importance.
Just like all those missing millions of Indigenous dollars overseen by individuals with demanding “brothers and sisters” wanting a cut, money has been spent unwisely by people in government believing taxpayer money is a renewable resource providing endless supply for little in return.
The NT is the place to come and hide a bad past and an incompetent future.
Indigenous people getting ripped off by their own community members too selfish or illiterate to manage power and money appropriately have only themselves to blame.
They are resting on their laurels, comfortable being controlled by a white paternalistic government, preferring to remain dumb, ignorant uneducated by wallowing in the past instead of going to school.
They do this so they can blame lack of opportunity and autonomy on whites when things go wrong, like their own family or elders going berserk buying private stuff from funded money.
The NT is taken advantage of by a lot of under-qualified people who wouldn’t get a look in elsewhere.
Why? Because even the urban white families are way too relaxed about the very poor performance in comparison with the rest of the country, including the poorest parts of larger cities.
Half-arsed efforts that at school pass for OK lead to half-arsed leaders of the future.
From the NT News down, the image presented is cringe worthy and low brow.
Gunner was probably a mediocre teacher too, as are a lot of teaching “Professionals”.
The failure and bad decision making by an out of sort ALP should not be seen as CLP success. You still have to earn it.
This time Territorians are not just going to hand it to you by default just because you happen to be a challenger.
Time for change does not always mean go back and appoint a previously failed group.
Bad way to do business.
Territorians will be demanding a new political party made up of qualified, capable people with experienced corporate and community leadership experience.
I agree with Matthew Langan.
The only politician who has the balls to say it how it is and he gets sacked.
How about we make him Chief Minister and sack Michael Gunner, then the Territory might get somewhere.
@ Eli Melky: But therein lies the problem … the current mob got in purely on a protest vote, regardless of their competence, capability and experience.
The Territory’s political talent pool is not only an oxymoron but it is a rapidly diminishing puddle.
We are over-governed and as a result, the majority of the NT’s elected representatives (at all levels of government) are simply not up to the job.
Sure, some of them are – but they are few and far between.
The problem is that we expect that career union officials, long term public servants, teachers, former advisers, lawyers and sportspeople (from both sides of the political fence) with no real-world commercial business experience can run an effective government and balance the books.