NEAR DEATH EXPERIENCES

Kerry Packer was wrong : there is something on the other side of the Styx – a gaggle of cadaverous -looking political aspirants waiting for sitting members of the NT Legislative Assembly to drop dead or retire so that they can slip into their padded seats. Whatever the outcome of the present political bunfight there are going to be some inevitable ramifications in both the ALP and the Country Party.

Especially in the ALP where a number of good ole boys and a girl or two have been biding time , in more or less arranged deals, waiting to be pre-selected for election in three years’ time , a number of sitting members certain to retire. Now all this seemingly orderly forward planning has been thrown into chaos, what with the suggestion that an election would see the ALP reduced to a rump that could be accommodated in a rickshaw , not a fleet of limos . Furthermore, it could be yonks before the party again gets back into power - depending upon the performance of the Country Party , which ain’t exactly filled with Einstein Factor contestants.

On the Country Party side, some ambitious supporters, smelling blood and sensing victory, will be lining up to get part of the action. Lightweight members on both sides can expect closer scrutiny from their own side and pre-selection challenges. Kingmaker Gerry Wood might also depart the scene , the stress of deciding the winner of the NT tag wrestling championship wearing him out