Back to the land of milk and honey

LETTER TO THE EDITOR
 
Sir – Finke weekend has arrived and again the town is bustling with activity.
 
Accommodation is full, shops are busy, the countryside is beautiful after the rain, beef prices are at a premium.
 
This year’s Budget promises the biggest proportion of government spending the region has seen since the Territory achieved Self Government.
 
Yeh, all in all especially given that things are so tough elsewhere, the Alice is a pretty damn good place to be right now! And while we enjoy and appreciate the opportunities granted we should contemplate despite the failings along the way, just how far we’ve come in a few short years since we removed a totally Darwin orientated Labor government and voted in the Country Liberals.
 
While I’m not going to pretend that there haven’t been hiccups along the way, with rather disappointing, and in my view selfish, personality clashes allowed to get in the way of the greater goals, nonetheless the achievements, the turnaround, has been quite remarkable.
 
While being out and about knocking on doors I get that there is a level of disgruntlement in the community with some policy decisions from the CLP. I’m asking those of you who wish to see our community continue to thrive and prosper to remember the bleak almost failed state conditions that prevailed when the CLP came to government.
 
Total neglect, total mayhem on the streets, no infrastructure spending, no vision and for the southern regions, almost no hope.
 
Those were the prevailing conditions just a few short years ago, the conditions that saw Advance Alice put people onto the streets and that eventually led to the enormous now infamous protest at the casino.
 
Alice Springs and the regions have seen a huge confidence, hope building, a turnaround, in that time!
 
Our streets, while still retaining issues, are vastly better than they were. This, along with a huge marketing effort, have seen a steadily growing turnaround in tourism.
 
There are huge new job creating projects on the immediate horizon, projects created by a growing confidence and belief in the region’s future, brought about by a government willing to listen and take on big ideas.
 
Changes to the Planning Act that will allow our CBD the levels of investment it needs to bring it back to life, a belief in the free enterprise system. New entrepreneurial business will taking advantage of that belief, taking up the amazing undeveloped opportunity the region offers.
 
There are some fabulous innovative new ideas such as the skywalks and the Festival of Light. They present opportunities to further highlight our tourist product along with our region to the world!
 
So much opportunity founded on belief, on confidence. But sadly that confidence can so easily be destroyed!
 
Fear of that region–destroying outcome, along with a passionate belief in what we can achieve, have convinced me to put up my hand this year to be the CLP’s candidate for Araluen in the upcoming NT election.
 
I believe and will do my best to convince you, that it is an absolute necessity for our town’s future that we don’t risk killing off growing confidence and belief by returning to the party that did its damnedest to destroy our community just a few short years ago.
 
The CLP must be allowed another term! Yes, I recognise that there are some policy adjustments needed but the Giles Government has assured me of its willingness to listen and I’m quite certain that those few adjustments will be made, making this a best ever government for our region.
 
Unfortunately a declining population balance brought about as a direct result of the favouring the Top End over and above the Centre by the preceding Labor Government has resulted in the electoral boundaries being adjusted and a Centralian voice in that best–ever government shifted to the north.
 
When you put this alongside the fact that the sitting member for Araluen, Robyn Lambly, has chosen to step outside of the government sitting as an independent and apparently quite willing to act against that government, it becomes obvious that our voice in a government that has produced so much for us, is severely weakened.
 
A vote for an independent of any persuasion, in any seat, will in fact very likely result in another term of Labor. So ask yourself, do you think our community, our region, can survive another term of Labor without suffering a region wide regression from which it could take several decades to recover? Think about the future!
 
Steve Brown
CLP Candidate for Araluen