Beautiful country
Roper Gulf Regional Council is one of the biggest Local Governments in the Northern Territory and spans an area of about 186,000 square kilometres. It’s a vast area with big differences between the 12 communities in it, which makes it exciting but also incredibly challenging as a Council.
It’s hard to narrow down my favourite part of our Local Government Area, because I think the Roper Gulf region has the most beautiful landscapes in the Northern Territory. I have to say that the Borroloola and Robinson River areas are the ones I like most, because I’m from there; it’s my home and I love getting out and seeing the country, especially from the air when the river systems are in flood during the wet season – it’s like nothing else you will ever see. I do have a secret spot that I go to for fishing and hunting, but I won’t tell you where it is, because I like knowing I’ll always be the only one there when I go.
Supporting the region
I have held the position of Mayor since the Council was amalgamated in 2008, but I was involved with planning for the amalgamation for about 18 months before it happened. Previous to becoming Mayor, I was on a lot of boards, but I saw local government as a way to play a better role in the region and achieve more for my area.
I’ve got a local Aboriginal labour hire business based in Robison River, which is a remote community in the Gulf of Carpentaria, about 1100 kilometres from Darwin. I see it as an indirect extension of my mayoral duties, because the council is committed to maximising economic development opportunities in our communities. By having a small business, I feel as though I’m helping to achieve that on two fronts.
In my spare time, I do a lot of camping and fishing – I love being outside. When the rodeo season is on I usually go to a lot of them, because my boys are all riding and competing. I don’t ride anymore, but I am still actively involved in rodeos and help out behind the chutes and with other behind-the-scenes jobs.
Overcoming the tyranny of distance
The biggest challenge for the Council is funding, because we have an extremely small ratepayer base. Communities want to grow, and we have to lobby and network really hard to ensure we can bring the dollars in to help our little towns through grants and other funding pathways.
Any large-scale projects the Council delivers always involve some measure of innovation, due in part to the sheer remoteness of our communities. The Council has been a major advocate for remote infrastructure, and currently has a $2.31 million project in progress to construct purpose-built freight hubs in Numbulwar and Ngukurr that will assist the communities with accessibility and long-term development opportunities. The project is being supported financially by the Federal and Northern Territory Governments.
I’m passionate about Local Authorities and seeing communities empowered and having their say. As a council, we have come a long way since 2008 developing policies and implementing a governance system that has made us a role model for other Northern Territory Councils. The Council’s Community Development Program has also been a huge success and put the Roper Gulf region in the national spotlight regularly, which is an achievement I’m proud of.
The best part of being a councillor, I think, is just advocating for our communities and getting a result for them. I’m very proud of the way we have come together as a Council over the past four-and-a-half years to achieve some great things. As a Council, we give our communities a strong voice at both the Territory and national levels.
As far as difficulties go, natural disasters can be challenging and chaotic, but I’m always proud to see how Council staff lead by example with preparations and clean-up efforts. Apart from that, I don’t think there is any worst part about being a Councillor.
I want to keep working hard for the Roper Gulf region and see what we’ve started as a council through to the end. There’s an election coming up in August and that helps refocus on the fact that we have a responsibility to leave the Council in a good position for whoever comes in down the track, whether it’s at the next election or the ones after that.
