Vote for Deputy Mayor, a matter of allegiance not record

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By KIERAN FINNANE

For the first time, the Town Council has an Indigenous woman serving in the position of Deputy-Mayor. This would have been so whichever way last night’s secret ballot went.

Councillor Jacinta Price (above) was confirmed in the position, while also standing was Cr Catherine Satour. Both have Central Australian Aboriginal heritage.

After her nomination Cr Satour asked if she could speak to her colleagues. She was allowed two minutes.

She referred to an apparent push from within council for a woman to take the position and expressed “absolute confidence” that a woman would be “more than capable and suitable”.

She then reminded councillors of the work she had done in her role to date:

The inclusion of Central Arrernte people in local Australia Day celebrations;

Bringing a motion of local Aboriginal people who were really concerned about community safety;

Led the raising of the Aboriginal flag on Anzac Hill;

Led the $200,000 Covid arts recovery package for Alice Springs;

Led the successful bid for national NAIDOC celebrations in 2021 (after postponement this year) – estimated to bring over $1m into the local economy.

In contrast, during her two minutes Cr Price – to whom Cr Satour (right) had wished “good luck” – had no particular achievement to point to.

She said she had put her “heart and soul” into being a representative on council for five years.

She appreciated the “hard work” that all council members provide together, despite their different backgrounds, to “come together as a team to represent our community and its  different facets”.

She had previously declined a nomination by Cr Jimmy Cocking to take the position, because “I felt as though I wouldn’t be able to give this position 100%”.

But “at this stage, given the experience that I’ve had in this council, I would love the opportunity”.

It was “exciting” that both she and Cr Satour had their hands up, she said – it would make a first for council.

She said she is committed to the community “as a whole”, encouraged by members of the public, supported “right across the community” to put her hand up for the position – from the multi-cultural community, from the Indigenous community, and the non-Indigenous community.

There was no surprise in the vote: she had been nominated by Cr Jamie de Brenni, seconded by Glenn Auricht, while Cr Matt Paterson also raised his hand to second.

Cr Satour was nominated by Cr Cocking, seconded Cr Eli Melky.

Given that both candidates would vote for themselves, that left only Mayor Damien Ryan and Cr Marli Banks’s votes unaccounted for: inconceivable that they would not vote with their ‘blocs’.

What is noteworthy is that actual achievement did not seem to matter.

 

Images: Screen captures from recent council meetings held on Zoom. Last night councillors returned to the chamber for the first time in many months due to pandemic arrangements.

5 COMMENTS

  1. Good to see female Indigenous representation on the council and being prepared to put their hands up for leadership roles. Let’s hope we see positive outcomes.

  2. Jacinta Price’s achievements have actually been significant; she remains a critical #1 go-to for the conservative hard-right IPA SkyNews culture warriors!
    Without Jacinta acting as remote-NT-dinky-di-Aboriginal-person commentator, who else would the SkyNews and alt-right talk circuit industry get to perpetuate mistruths and simplistic ideologies? Seriously! Who?

  3. Male, female, Indigenous, what has gender or heritage got to do with good governance?
    Forget about who your father was or where your mother came from, look at the state that Alice is in.
    I have just returned from the Territory including Alice and its a shameful state of affairs to see the unruly and disruptive behaviour by a certain group of people throughout the state.
    “Unruly” implies lack of discipline or incapacity for discipline and often connotes waywardness or turbulence of behaviour.
    Jacinta, I know you will do your very best but you will be shut down by the blind lefty, politically correct apologists. Hopefully other members of the local council will be able to see the “forest from the trees”.

  4. Catherine would be more committed as Miss Price has other commitments elsewhere.
    Or is this why they elected her to a position she can be frequently absent from?
    So can they rethink this decision as she, Miss Price, really wasn’t committed as a councillor.
    Many don’t get golden opportunities, so this decision seem to be unfair to us as a community as well as Cr Satour, staying not debating.

  5. Best choice as Jacinta tells it as it is. The truth, and not scared of speaking the truth.
    All the best.

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