GOVERNMENT POACHING CAUSES CONCERN

The expansion of the NT Government’s propaganda and PR wings is causing problems for the commercial Film and Television Association of the NT (FATANT) . The Association , with some 70 members, has complained to the government about the way commercial staff is lured away by government departments to carry out work which could and should be done by private enterprise.

The poaching of staff damages the capacity and running of already existing businesses . Private enterprise finds it hard to compete against the government’s capacity to offer higher salaries .

Over the past year , at least four ministers, including the Chief Minister, Paul Henderson, have been made aware of the situation . Other ministers told of the problem were Marion Scrymgour, now an independent , Dr Burns , when he was the Health Minister, and Kon Vatskalis.

It is understood Dr Burns was surprised to learn that the NT Health Department has a section known as the Interactive Communications and Development Unit which has about $70,000 worth of equipment , including several video production suites , a camera , and a staff of five making it the second largest production house in the NT.

The Unit produces health related film and TV material which private enterprise believes should be tendered out in accordance with the Federal government’s intention to stimulate business.


Education has $30,000 worth of camera equipment sitting in a cupboard but currently no staff to operate it and other departments with growing production units include Primary Industry and Police . There is a belief in FATANT that money intended to be spent under the Federal government intervention to improve conditions in Aboriginal communities is being diverted into government departments to purchase more expensive equipment and to expand propaganda activities .

SECRET FIRE SERVICE RISK ASSESSMENT

What has happened to the risk assessment report on the Northern Territory Fire and Rescue Service ?. Carried out by a southern consultant , Jim Kent, the report was handed to the NT Police Commissioner early this year. Little Darwin understands the extensive report, said to be 50 or more pages in length, revealed a most unsatisfactory situation that has existed for years which has been the cause of much legitimate complaint to fire service management.


In fact, the damning report appears to have confirmed in spades an earlier three page occupational health and safety report which was immediately discredited in bureaucratic fashion and buried. Not so long ago Police Commissioner White did a tour of fire stations and received an “ earful” about shortcomings in the fire service and requests for details of the Kent risk assessment report . The home truths were not what he hears when talking with the rank and file in the constabulary . It seems the report is too hot to be seen by the firefighters and the public as it is still under wraps.

PLUMBING THE POLITICAL DEPTHS

A prominent Darwin plumber is likely to have his certificate of registration cancelled for failing to fix the source of a leak which exploded and nearly washed the NT Government up the mighty Limpopo River without a paddle.

The Dutch plumber , who boasted he was related to the brave boy who digitally saved Holland’s vital tulip industry from inundation, had been called in earlier in the week to investigate an ominous rumble in the S-bend which services the l5 executive washrooms in parliament house, aka the marzipan Wedding Cake.

The mystery roar, described variously as one of those rude sounds made by Neddy Seagoon in the Goon Show and the great Krakatoa explosion , happened on the hour every hour. It also generated what looked like a leak under the carpet , the place where many contentious issues are swept . Unable to solve the puzzle, the dodgy plumber stuffed a wad of media releases into the S-bend and it went silent . Then he presented a bill for $20,000 , free tickets to the V8 car races and an invite to the Chief Minister’s Xmas booze up.

Came the day of an important caucus meeting , which started with the usual singing of Solidarity Forever , and the soggy media releases disintegrated. With a frightening roar , the S-bend cleared and erupted like the Pohutu Geyser at Whakarewarewa after yet again being soaped by a visiting team of drunken Aussie rugby league players. The cascade brought tears of fear to the eyes of caucus members as a biblical flood suddenly filled the chamber in the middle of a Hillsong bonding session. With water up to their chins, somebody screamed, “ Don’t slam the door !”, fearing a tidal wave of grey water would pour down their cake holes. Interpol has been called in to track down the plumber who is believed to be in charge of the bilge pumps aboard a bumboat on the Zeider Zee

NIGHTCLIFF BREAK INS/ COURT DELAY

Once again ,two shops in the Nightcliff Village have been broken into in one night . For one of the shops it was the 32nd raid on their premises in six years , which must be close to a Territory record. It is also a massive financial burden and distressing for people trying to make a living, their trading hours reduced because of lawlessness.

With the usual fanfare, the NT Government recently announced CCTV would be installed at Palmerston , Casuarina and elsewhere in the city. But not at Nightcliff where shopkeepers and nearby residents, especially in the housing commission areas , have been under virtual siege for years . Little Darwin recently detailed the intolerable situation at Nightcliff which obviously demands a new co-ordinated approach .

In other Nightcliff news, the hearing of an application for a noise abatement order against real estate agent Tony Fotiades , of Sandalwood Street, was adjourned when a magistrate ruled himself out of the case because he knew one of the plaintiff's witnesses , the well known Chips Mackinolty , who lives nextdoor to Fotiades. Magistrate Lowndes said he had been in contact with Mackinolty over many years . Witnesses , including two police officers, were forced to wait around while an attempt was made to find a magistrate to hear the case . There being no one available , the case was adjourned until next month to set a hearing date.

Chips recently figured in the NT News in respect of a computer generated painting he and Therese Ritchie produced of the Nightcliff MLA Jane Aagaard. It shows the beaming member standing with her hand next to a fine bone china cup and saucer, not Royal Doulton with handpainted periwinkles, and what seems like a packet of Scotch fingers. The newspaper account said Ms Aagaard's portrait now hangs in parliament house.

WEIRD WARNING AND ANNOYING CALLS

A strange animated message with a warning " not to read the following if you have moral, ethical or religious reasons against hurting (or even killing ) someone who violently attacks you ,your wife or your kids" has been popping up on the computer screen . Coupled with the bank security number scams , there has been an increase in annoying telemarketing calls from twerps who won't take no for an answer.

BIFF! THUMP! SOCK!- NT JUNGLE RUMBLE

In a desperate bid to overcome his money problems, lovable Humphrey B Bear is to fight a masked Northern Territory politician in the Botanical Gardens as part of the Darwin City Council cracker night celebrations.

The boxing pollie has not been named- but Little Darwin has been told he will have an unusual ring name like the Larrakeyah Lip or the Mouth from the South . He has been in heavy training for the fight and recently narrowly won a punch up with a tipsy bridesmaid at a wedding in a torrid 10 rounder.A sporting vicar who officiated as the referee in the nuptials brawl received a black eye , was kicked in the gizonkas and has since taken a vow of celibacy .

In an exclusive interview with Little Darwin , Humphrey B Bear , out doing roadwork this morning in Mitchell Street , said he is looking forward to the rumble in the jungle. "I love yuz all in Darwin , " he said , skipping , jabbing , sweating , grunting, chewing on a slippery salmon. Yogi Bear has a long association with Darwin and used to appear at promotions for Tim the Toy Man -Timmy Forday- at Parap.

Channel 9 has secured the exclusive rights of what promises to be one of the great sporting events of the century. It will be beamed via a North Korean satellite which is gathering barnacles in the Sea of Japan - emitting strange sounds like a live recording of Legislative Assembly debates in Aussie Mandarin .

MAORI GUIDE FOR NT POLITICS ?

Because of their cultural background and obligations , it is inevitable that indigenous members of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly, from time to time, have to go against decisions made by their own political party .

Not so very long ago, Alison Anderson and Malarndirri McCarthy crossed the floor opposing the McArthur River mine legislation, in the process receiving flak from ALP members , the usual iron- fisted, single –minded mining juggernaut and derision from assorted hacks.

And just recently Marion Scrymgour felt so strongly about an issue it led to her quitting the ALP. For her stance, she was made to appear emotionally unbalanced -even reportedly crying , which she did not, at that leaky caucus meeting. Even if she had wept , so what ? Prime Minister Bob Hawke managed to shed a tear or two in public and nobody inferred he was erratic, bonkers , unstable. Malcolm Fraser appeared to weep in public and US Deputy Sheriff John Howard came close to blubbering after his defeat. In fairness, it must be said that the only members of the Legislative Assembly who seem to show some real guts and stand for principles, against enormous pressure, are its indigenous members .

Perhaps the time has come when the indigenous members should consider forming a power bloc of their own to give them collective clout and protection from organised , unreasonable attacks . In a situation very similar to that which pertains in the Territory, New Zealand’s Maori Party was formed on July 7, 2004 . Its co-leader , Tariana Turia , launched the party after resigning from the Labour Party where she had been a Cabinet minister in the fifth Labour- led government. She had been told that if she voted in favor of Maori ownership of the foreshore and seabed , it would be “ incompatible” with holding ministerial rank. She resigned, and won back her seat at a by –election two months later. A high profile academic, Pita Sharples, was another co-leader of the Maori Party . After the 2008 election , the Maori Party , with four seats, supported the National –led government , Turia and Sharples becoming ministers .

Properly united and determined as the Maori Party , with strong policies, such a group , within the party , could be more influential in NT politics , especially as the next election is likely to see a few more independents stand , so many voters fed up with lightweights on both sides of the two main parties.

THE SOUNDS OF SILENCE

Is anyone in Northern Territory politics likely to mention today's call for increased action against the murderous Burmese generals who are holding Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest ? Maybe , now that film stars and Yoko Ono are speaking up against the house arrest and current phoney trial of Suu Kyi. If the Chief Minister can pose with a bevvy of beauties to promote the V8 cars , surely he should speak out about the oppression of the Burmese whose energy resources are being plundered by the military junta with the willing involvement of a number of companies with interests in Australia, including here in the NT. The British PM , the beleagured Mr Brown, is even speaking out in the Australian media about the outrageous Burmese situation . Today on national radio, as part of global action, people were urged to send 64 words of support for Suu Kyi and the Burmese to mark her 64th birthday. It should be possible to frame a statement on behalf of the NT government and its Federal representatives .

POLICE UNDERBELLY EXPOSED

There are sensational allegations this morning that Victorian detectives use brutal means to get confessions from gangland figures. It has been revealed that Carl Williams finally cracked after being force - fed shortbread for two years by the Puranha Squad . At the end of the torture he was suffering from scurvy and looked like a weevil - riddled ship’s biscuit on Captain Bligh’s HMS Pandora.

Puranha knew they had worn Williams down when he began to imitate a stool pigeon , flap his arms and screech ,“ Polly wants a shortbread cracker.” Many crims fled interstate and overseas to escape the inhuman treatment . However, a new breed of scumbags sprang up and it was rumoured that police were inserting shortbread under the fingernails of suspects. People said to be helping police in their investigations into gangland murders were often seen leaving police stations covered in biscuit crumbs- followed by pigeons, the growing number of street beggars and starving nude pensioners.

Former Police Commission , Christine Nixon , keen on Tim Tams and Monte Carlos , received a tip off about the use of shortbread and immediately issued instructions to seal all cookie tins in police canteens. Then, disguised as a tea lady, she raided Russell Street and found detectives - about to launch a raid on public enemies number 1 to 5 - filling their pockets with stale shortbread . The Victorian Police Association was tipped off about the suspicious tea lady who carried a truncheon and immediately sent out a cryptic message to all detectives : The party is over because the fat lady wants to send us to Sing Sing . Furthermore, the Association said all shortbread and other biscuits should be removed and replaced with sensitive, new age guy fairy floss.

FOOTNOTE : Strangely,the latest murder victim , Desmond " Tuppence " Moran , was known to slip racehorses tasty shortbread which made them perform like Phar Lap .

HE OF THE NEVER NEVER

No sooner had Little Darwin described rubber- faced Peter Costello as being from the back of beyond , the miffed backbencher has popped up here in Darwin . Whatever for ? He is no shadow minister, just the Coalition’s Phantom of the Opera, lurking with third degree burns in the mouldy back row of parliament house. Given that he tenaciously represents his electorate , deep in the Victorian swine flu belt, it is to be hoped he has not become a carrier and is endangering the health and fabulous lifestyle of Top Enders by gracing us with his presence. On air in Darwin, he seemed feverish when it came to the subject of the Prime Minister. Kevin Rudd , he said, is deliberately using slang to pass himself off as a true- blue Aussie yobbo - instead of a defrocked Presbyterian minister seen keeping close company with a dark- haired skinny sheila, probably a pole dancer from a gentlemen’s club, whose name is Jean Shrimpton , and wears shocking mini- skirts to the Melbourne Cup, causing horses to bolt and old governors –general to break wind , totter about corporate boxes , and be swabbed .

Costello has two weeks to go to indicate whether or not he intends standing again in the seat of Higgins. Thus his Territory visit may not have been a way of escaping pestiferous Melbourne, but part of a last hurrah . Nevertheless, the tip is that the anti- Turnbull forces dearly want Costello to stay ,so he may just hang on in there , hoping to eventually receive the Coalition's gunmetal orb and sceptre.

STOP PRESS : Costello is quitting , his political ambition to become the nation's top banana utterly squashed like a Tasmanian possum run over by a logging truck heading for Gunns mill .

KERRY O'BRIEN ATTACKED BY CHERUBS

As the Coalition increasingly vents its spleen on anything and everyone in sight- slapping each other in public , yelling and plotting against colleagues behind closed doors- its right wing media footsoldiers have turned their prolix pens on Kerry O’Brien , presenter of the admirable ABC’s 7.30 Report . In a recent piece outlining the sins of O’Brien, Christopher Pearson ,in the Weekend Australian , delighted in quoting his fellow seminarians , Andrew Bolt and Gerard Henderson, with Pearson forming a trio of gimlet- eyed extras who would willingly participate in a real Life of Brian stoning.

It seems that after covering the handing down of the budget , O’Brien , in hallowed ground, the Holy Grail , a classy Canberra boozer and eatery , shouted a round of tequilas for a group of people who included some Liberal staffers. The right wing scribes said O’Brien dared express honest, personal opinions about a number of politicians … Costello lazy, should go, a sponge, etc; Swan, a lightweight, the budget “soft” ; Turnbull, the best chance the Libs have as a leader . This last statement saying Turnbull is the only hope for the Libs is dynamite - for plotters within the Coalition who grit their teeth and kick the cat each time anything nice is said about Malcolm.

Chubby Christopher Pearson said the ABC refused to comment when he, Bolt and Henderson demanded an explanation about O’Brien’s utterances that fateful budget night when morsels of loaves and fishes were washed down with Mexican kickapoo juice. There was even a suggestion that O'Brien should be sacked because of comments he made re the grimacing , back of beyond Costello .

Like a good head prefect, Pearson alerted the nation to the fact that O’Brien is known as “Red Kezza” (he has red hair ) and his politics are thought to match . Furthermore, Mr P said O’Brien had been Gough Whitlam’s press secretary. Gasp! ( This is true , folks, as the writer of this item is a contemporary of O’Brien’s and had dealings with him and the great man Gough Whitlam in Darwin.) What Pearson failed to say is that he (Christopher ) had been a Howard handmaiden , writing speeches, etc.etc., etc, receiving plum posts as a result , a job as a museum taxidermist, for example.


It should be known that the same Christian Christopher Pearson was once deeply involved with the ungodly Australian Labor Party . In Adelaide he was on the editorial committee of the ALP journal Labour Forum which used to stick it up the Coalition. Surely not ! Yes, his name was up there on the editorial board with ALP leading lights such as Neal Blewett, Nick Bolkus, John Dawkins, Gareth Evans Grahame Maguire and journalist Bruce Muirden , the latter a former editor of Darwin's Northern Standard and the South Australian ALP newspaper and press secretary to a brace of Labor premiers .

The thankful South Australian Labor Government showered money upon Pearson ,assisting him in various publishing ventures . As a result , he swanned about Adelaide fleshpots , basking in the adoration . Then , somehow, he had a religious conversion , became bi-political and ambidextrous , turning his hand to spreading the gospel of Prime Minister Howard.

Running through Pearson’s columns is a regular thread of religiosity in which he has mentioned his ill health , indicatiing that he may soon meet his maker . Little Darwin has an Aussie suggestion for God when he sees fit to call Christopher home . In a long gone Australian magazine , Man , there used to be an hilarious centrespread cartoon called Hellzapoppin in which a sanctimonious scribe entered details of the mad event which caused the demise of the latest sinner to enter the fire and brimstone filled underworld . Christopher, with Little Johnnie’s backing and influence , would be a perfect chronicler in such a satanic sulphurous surrounding.

PS: God , even though he is an atheist , please let sickly Phillip Adams of Late Night Live run amok for ever and a day as he annoys the daylights out of the real forces of darkness in this nation . Besides, the three amigos -Bolt, Henderson and Pearson - don't send him Chrissy cards, which I am sure you will agree is an un-Christian attitude.

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NIGHTCLIFF POLITICAL NOTES

Was it the Scrymgour Saga and the prospect of an early election which prompted the appearance of the CLP at the Nightliff Sunday market ? The CLP people were keen to hear about local problems and volunteered that residents in the nearby Litchfield housing commission area have been having a torrid time, especially at night . Once again the area fronting Progress Drive is being hit by graffiti . The Nightcliff Village has also been subjected to graffiti and as fast as it is painted over, reappears. Graffiti is now appearing high up on The Planet roof and the former Rite Price building , increasingly daubed , is looking like a Third World site , its smashed signs adding to the run down image of the area. Nearby is the barricaded burnt out shells of the Loong Fong seafood restaurant and the old Phoenix Hotel,the cause of the fire still under investigation . Word is that former residents of the troubled Parap housing area are making their presence known in the John Stokes housing area, nights variously described as a nightmare and madness.

ROY CLEANS UP DARWIN WORKERS

Cricket naughty boy Andrew Symonds is to open the world's first drive through automatic scrubbing machine for grubby Territory workmen . Darwin's repulsive , smelly tradesmen will enter the machine and come out the end as clean as a baby in a talcum powder advertisement with a free , pre-used toothbrush autographed by Symonds . They will then be fit to mix with gentlemen and scholars in Territory pubs. The wonderful worker washer is at the cutting edge of the international war against grime and smelly armpits .

It has been designed by a famous British space engineer who makes the amazing machines in the popular Wallace and Gromit TV show. Symonds was introduced to the brilliant engineer by a strange looking penguin he was drinking with at Old Trafford during a thirsty Test match. The dodgy penguin was later questioned by police over a plot to steal Don Bradman's jockstrap from a bulletproof showcase in the priceless Lord's collection.

Fifty of the machines will be installed throughout the Territory and undoubtedly earn Symonds a Clean Up Australia gong. In an exclusive interview with the cricketer at the Silly Point Tavern , Symonds told Little Darwin he intends to settle in Darwin and run exclusive fishing safaris for big game New Zealand whitebait which fight harder than a giant marlin and do poi dances and the haka in the process.

MANDORAH POLICING PROBLEMS

Like Palmerston , Nightcliff and many other centres, Mandorah , across the harbour , has a law and order problem which has virtually gone unnoticed by the city media .

Fortunately, it has a local monthly newspaper, Wagaitear, also available online, edited by veteran reporter Jack Ellis, with many years’ NT experience , to fight for Cox Peninsula . He’s so brave, he still umpires Darwin footy matches, something Russell Crowe would not do , even if armed with a long handled trident. Without fear or favour - and a dash of humour- Wagaitear covers an area with a population of about 600, including 140 at Belyuen Aboriginal community.

The Mandorah area receives police rural patrols from time to time , mainly from Humpty Doo Police Station , 100kms away, a distance which can be covered in 45 minutes in an emergency. It is supposed to receive six patrols a week, but this ,for various reasons, is often not the case . In the seven and half years Ellis has lived at Mandorah , he believes six patrols were only achieved in one week , just recently, after he raised the law and order issue in his publication.

Like a good journo should, Ellis goes all the way to the top for answers . In the process , he comes up against many spin doctors, whom he is on record as saying he eats before tucking into his petit dejeuner muesli . This is a quaint way of saying he will not be put off- as shown by his dogged pursuit in the following episode

The May 1 edition of Wagaitear carried a front page story, POLICE “COP OUT” which said the “ a stubborn refusal” by police to establish a permanent presence on Cox Peninsula was disadvantaging growing numbers of residents at “ dry ” Belyuen. Since intervention, it said, the lack of police had seen a flood of spirits and cheap wine from Darwin , resulting in an increase in abuse, swearing, fighting, drunken and anti-social behavior, mainly around the Mandorah jetty. Anecdotal information from Belyuen ,where no one was game to be quoted , indicated the same sort of problems . The paper said for 18 months the Indigenous Affairs Minister ,Jenny Macklin, via the NT Police Department , had maintained the peninsula was adequately policed from Palmerston and Humpty Doo. Clearly, it is not, Ellis wrote.

Police Commissioner Paul White was asked to explain the situation which had deteriorated into a “ virtual free for all “, and why officers were not based where they could promptly respond. The officer in charge of Palmerston was delegated to give a reply . Said Ellis : “ How a regional senior officer - however competent – was expected to answer policy questions directed to the Commissioner borders on the ridiculous.” When the delegated officer was not available, Ellis asked Police Minister Paul Henderson for a response. According to the Wagaitear report, this resulted in an immediate response : the police said they could not comment because the matter was now in the Minister’s hands. There was no answer from Mr Henderson , but the media unit provided info on two brawls, one at the Narrows( in Darwin ) and the other at Mandorah , said to be linked .

The June 1 edition of Wagaitear contains additional information from police headquarters saying police had held a meeting at Belyuen with “ key stakeholders” to discuss alcohol abuse issues . Wagaitear was informed “ We are exploring options to increase the value of the police presence by obtaining access to permanent overnight accommodation and office facilities.”

The paper went on to say the Belyuen Night Patrol members deal with drunks on a nightly basis and face abuse from people they refuse to transport while they carry alcohol. These patrol officers are not allowed to speak with the media about the level of assistance they get from the police or the problems they face on a nightly basis . Ellis makes it abundantly clear he does not blame the police on the beat for the situation- it is a cluster of key people at the top who cannot see the obvious solution and put it into action.

FOOTNOTE : From time to time , Mandorah is plagued by hoons who arrive from Darwin or elsewhere and roar around the streets. On one occasion, the residents formed a blockade of vehicles, the keys of the offending car were grabbed and the driver told that if he did not depart the area rapidly he would have to swim for the keys in the harbour. The failure of law and order drives people to desperate measures

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ABC INSULT TO GREAT MAN

After scrubbing the execrable Chaser's send up of dying children ,the ABC should now pull the Free TV advertisement which includes a clip of Mohammad Ali with Moonface Bert Newton saying he likes "the boy". For all those TV executives who participated in the production of the Free TV advertisement , "boy" is an offensive word in the Afro-American community when used by unthinking whiteys. Ali was the greatest in more ways than one during his boxing career . As Cassius Clay Jnr , called the Louisville Lip, before changing his name, he rose to great heights and was named Sportsman of the Century in l991 by Sports Illustrated magazine and Sports Personality of the Century by the BBC. He refused to serve in the Vietnam war, was arrested and found guilty of draft evasion charges, banned from boxing. He deserves respect .

REAL NIGHTCLIFF SITUATION EXPOSED

A surprising number of people in the NT Government just cannot grasp the fact that Nightcliff is going to the dogs and that a coordinated new approach is needed to cope with the long running canker. Not spin doctoring , denial, a few more drive through police patrols , photo opportunities for the media . Assorted welfare, mental health workers and police on the ground are needed. Dare we invoke the government's own slogan FRESH IDEAS, REAL RESULTS ? Last week, a person who moves in political circles , a Nightcliff resident , was heard say things were “pretty good” down the Nightcliff Village way. He made this statement in the area shortly after his conversation was interrupted by the ranting of a large man , a renowned thug, who not so long ago reportedly dragged a woman up the laneway at Nightcliff Village and “ bashed the shit out of her”. Later ,three women armed with sticks chased the basher around the shopping centre and he took refuge in a parked police car .

• Nightcliff is in this odd situation where it has a Clayton’s police station – the cop shop you have when you don’t have a gendarmerie. That it is not a real police station is borne out by the fact that the letter C is missing from its sign and has been for years, and the doors close before dark when all kinds of wild events often take place . Residents are told not to go there if they expect police help. It also shuts for weekends . Motor vehicle speed checking units are garaged there and there is a domestic violence section in the premises, but never any sign of a human being visible from the front door.
  
  Many people in the Nightcliff area are deeply concerned about the failure of law and order in the district. Some are obviously emotionally scarred by the never ending troubles . A number of shopkeepers , including members of the medical and dental profession , recently detailed their experiences in statutory declarations which went to Chief Minister Henderson and his minions. Here is a condensed summary of the intolerable situation business people and the public are subjected to , with some additional explanatory information in some cases.
  
  
  1. There are constant problems associated with anti -social behavior and crime in the Nightcliff Village area. My business broken into 31 times in the last six years and there are constant problems with vandalism , violence ,bad language , public drinking , outside area used as toilet ,humbugging , public drinking , begging and many other problems. We also have erratic mental health problem people living in Housing Commission across the road causing constant and daily worries and fears Our windows were smashed in the daytime by one tenant , it cost us $1100. Prostitutes and drug dealers can be seen on a daily basis operating between the Bendigo Bank and the fish and chip shop. I can see no easy solution other than more police presence and quicker response time. Meetings at office of Jane Aagaards , but nothing has really been done. I have been refused assistance from the Nightcliff Police Station on numerous occasions. Stopped trading at night because of itinerants and police non response. I work hard , have never been compensated or given any financial assistance for crimes committed against me and my business. What I make , after long hours, is under the poverty line.
  
  2. In Pavonia Place groups of itinerants pour cask wine into soft drink bottles and drink publicly beside and in children’s playground. Patients harassed as they walked by ; broken into recently and two attempts at break in. Several windows smashed over the years Bottle thrown through window as well as a large rock.
  
  3 “ I am emotionally stressed and tired at the drunken and violent behaviour in Nightcliff Shopping Village a t Progress Drive. My customers and staff are traumatised by their anti - social behaviour and do not feel safe .The place is constantly littered by alcohol bottles, blood and rubbish.”
  
  4.Long standing Nightcliff business. The violence , behaviour and language in this area appalling ; customers find this an issue as well and the safety factor has to be considered. “I would not venture into this area at night as it feels unsafe”.
  Something has to be done about this issue.
  
  5. Premises broken into five times. “ Each time I have had to pay for repairs and cleaning up and lost business for that period.”Extremely concerned about break ins and vandalism in the shopping centre and feel that there needs to be a solution to this ,together with a greater police presence .
  
  6. Broken into on several occasions , windows broken, graffiti sprayed over walls. Problems with itinerants ,swearing , defecating ,urinating , aggression. Suggest the road and area between Progress Drive and Woolworths should be fenced off to stop people grouping together , drinking and spreading rubbish .” Dry area is NOT working.”
  
  7. The introduction of a CCTV and a police presence at Nightcliff ( would be ) a step in right direction.
  
  8.Drinking, humbugging, begging , swearing and aggressive behaviour.”Most frustrating is the lack of action taken by the local member of Nightcliff to address any of the problems . Her job is to communicate , support and represent our community .We need her help
  
  9. Has been running a Nightcliff business for 12 years and picks up eldest son from evening job in the city every Friday and Saturday night at midnight for 12 months. “ I always take my Doberman in the car with me , and lock doors and windows to pass through Nightcliff and Coconut Drive safely . Every single night between 12.30-1am I have personally witnessed in Dick Ward Drive from Runge Street flats through to Progess Drive, near The Planet , become a war zone . I regularly have to avoid drunks staggering and fighting on the roads , people threatening the car, kids throwing objects at the car and generally groups of people and kids milling around. I dread the drive through Nightcliff . Also I don’t allow my teenage children to walk around Nightcliff after dark , and I won’t go near Nightcliff Shopping Centre of an evening. In general, I do not feel safe in Nightcliff anymore.”
  
  10. Itinerants a problem in playground area ,using it as a toilet at night , cleaned up by council .Drunks yell at each other and children in the playground. Broken glass and rubbish a hazard for children Business windows broken on numerous occasions.
  
  11. Running our business we are regularly subjected to disgusting displays , foul language, and arguments resulting in physical violence. “It seems incredible to me that in a civilized society we are expected to live with this degenerate behaviour.”
  
  12. The last two and a half years have seen a huge increase in the trouble/vandalism/ anti-social behaviour in the area. The shop broken into and windows smashed nine times .Most other shops in the area are the same. Drunken behaviour has been slightly better during the day since the no-alcohol ruling, but still a problem .There are two blatant drug dealers selling from either the wall outside my shop seats next to the zebra crossing. “This is not an area I would dare venture into after dark , and certainly would not want to live here .” ( Told by police at the Nightliff Police Station no use coming around t here for help , as they will have to call to get somebody to come down , presumably from Casuarina ).
  
  13. I have observed and been affected by anti-social behaviour in Nightcliff Shopping Village: physical assault, verbal assault, humbugging, shoplifting,vandalism,graffiti and smashed windows .People threatened with knives and prostitution discussed.
  
  14. All of the shopfront windows smashed twice, backdoor almost ripped off hinge in attempted break in. Itinerants regularly defecate and urinate at our front door, abuse our clients and us. Police called on a regular basis –to no avail. They are back the next day ! Police do a good job , we do not blame them for the situation .”Most of us have given up any hope of having the problem rectified.” Darwin City Council sympathetic and help as much as they can (more than most ) . “Our local member has done nothing that we can see .” Shop owners in the Nightcliff Shopping Village put up with everything mentioned here every day to a greater and lesser extent.
  
  15. A l2 –page statutory declaration says the violence in the Nightcliff Shopping Centre is a danger to women with children who frequent the centre on a daily basis for dance classes and markets on Sunday. It raises the need for a different approach to the problems of homeless and itnerants .While agreeing it is a challenge to find a solution to the problems , it points out the situation impacts on the running of the centre , the business activities and the tourist industry .Taxes are paid in the expectation that the government will do its job
  
• 16. At the time of writing this statutory declaration , March 20, the shop had been broken into on five occasions Each time the owner had to pay for repairs and cleaning up with a loss of business . “ I am extremely concerned about the break ins and vandalism in this shopping centre and feel that there needs to be a solution to this , together with a police presence. ( The shop has been broken into yet again and owner patrols premises with a dog .) More information and photographs will be posted from time to time.

BREACH OF ALP SECURITY

Alternating between white and red-faced, the NT ALP branch secretary, Mark Whittaker,clutching his BlackBerry , absented himself from the Sunday Nightcliff ALP meeting saying there had been a breach of security back at the factory. It seemed to be a serious situation. Strange. Can any political/police reporter ring Mark and ask for information about the worrying security breach on the sabbath ?

FOLLOW UP- After the above item was posted, Little Darwin received a telephone call from a cynical person who said the security breach message to Whittaker was obviously a coded message of pending doom for the NT government due to Marion Scymgour about to announce she is prepared to walk . That caller obviously watches that tense British drama, Spooks, where terrifying messages about the end of the world by nuclear warfare are passed on through coded cell phone messages.