Comments on: Labor would spend as much on a third set of footy oval lights as it would on the rest of Alice

By: Ian Quin

Ian Quin — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 07:06:51 +0000

ALP Pork barreling again? What about agriculture as a vehicle for community development, gives people a real job and dignity.
The ALP is clearly anti agriculture as seen by declining to participate in Ord stage 2, the decline to assist AAA Co’s meat works proposal in Darwin, the imbalance of regulation versus innovation by the DOR.
Well done by ALP, the footy lights will really get a few votes but in the end there may not be any one there to play footy except a few welfare entitlement holders. The same applies to the Palmerston water slide – how many millions wasted there?

By: Daniel Davis

Daniel Davis — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 06:39:52 +0000

Was this not a promise that the Labor government made in 03/04 and claimed to have completed in 2004?
According to the news release (see link below) the new lights were supposedly appropriate for night time AFL broadcasts. Why do we need to spend another $2.5m now, did they stuff it up the first time?
http://newsroom.nt.gov.au/2004/20040122_traegerlights.shtml

By: Hal Duell

Hal Duell — Sat, 18 Aug 2012 06:12:57 +0000

I agree with Leigh Childs. Vote Independent. But, and here is the kicker, make sure the Independent will remain independent! Nick Xenophon seems to be a good example, but Windsor, Oakeshott and Wilkie are not, and neither is our own Gerry Wood.

By: Leigh Childs

Leigh Childs — Sat, 18 Aug 2012 02:01:04 +0000

While living in Darwin many years ago, when the CLP was in power and I was working as a volunteer for our kids’ local primary school, I remember all the angst of the “devolving power to parents and schools” policy and the closing of “uneconomic” schools right across the Territory. At Nightcliff Primay we had a frantic building program to house the influx of kids ousted from “uneconomic” Rapid Creek Primary School. At no point during the building and at the official opening of the new facilities did our local member, Steve Hatton, admit that all the funds came from the Commonwealth coffers. He always made it sound like his party had supplied the funds.
I just wish to make the point to some fanatical correspondents to this site, that ALL political parties play with “the facts”.
If you want your vote to count, vote for an Independent. Look how much power Nick Xenophon has and how much he has been able to achieve for his constituents.

By: Bob Taylor

Bob Taylor — Fri, 17 Aug 2012 08:19:42 +0000

Yippee, a footy and infrastructure led economic recovery. No mention of the funding to staff, run or maintain these infrastructure promises. The ALP might not sack one single public servant, but will they decentralise departments, senior public servants and staffing generally out of Darwin? Rather than trying to better the ALP with infrastructure and footy funding the CLP would be on a winner by putting their emphasis on facilitating improved educational resources and outcomes for girls. I could paste numerous quotes on the benefits of improving education for girls instead I will leave readers to do there own research.

By: Steve Brown

Steve Brown — Fri, 17 Aug 2012 07:45:59 +0000

What disgraceful tokenism! No wonder our economy is in so much trouble! I don’t know how anybody from the Alice can stand alongside this bloke and not hang their heads in shame. If I was an Alice Springs Labor Candidate I’d be cringing in a corner somewhere. Paul Henderson obviously has no respect at all for the people of Alice. It’s enough to make me think longingly of a time when we had good old fashion institutions like tar and feathering at our disposal [sigh]. Oh well, guess we are just going to have to be content with a good old fashioned kick in the backside on Election Day. Not long to go now!