Rumours dog NT Senator Sam McMahon as marriage crumbles

TERRITORY Senator Sam McMahon has announced she has split from her husband as she seeks to dispel rumours about her personal life

Sam McMahon and Wayne Nayda are trying to “work through” their marriage issues. Picture: Supplied

TERRITORY Senator Sam McMahon has announced she has split from her husband as she seeks to dispel rumours about her personal life.

After infighting dogged the Country Liberal Party’s Central Council Meeting at the weekend, Senator McMahon took the extraordinary step of going public about her marriage breakdown.

“There’s been some speculation in my personal life,” Senator McMahon said.

“I am going through a marriage separation at the moment. It is a very difficult and stressful time for myself and my husband and I would just ask everyone to respect our privacy and work through these difficult matters.”

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Her public comments followed a slanging match at the weekend between her husband, Wayne Nayda, and her chief of staff, Jason Riley.

The dispute between the two men played out over a CLP Facebook messenger group known as “CLP Buzz”, before the group chat was shut down.

Mr Nayda then posted a message – since deleted – on his Facebook page after assuming only he had been deleted from the group chat.

“To all my friends who are on CLP Buzz, Jason Toad Riley, Senator Sam McMahon’s chief of staff has removed (me) from CLP Buzz. Obviously did not like my comments about him if that is the caliber (sic) of the CLP guess I best talk to (Terry) Mills,” Mr Nayda said.

When contacted on Monday, Mr Nayda said he had mistakenly thought only he had been frozen out of the group conversation.

“That was my mistake. I thought I was being isolated but I wasn’t,” he said.

He confirmed his marriage to Senator McMahon had broken down and said they were trying to work through their issues.

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The dispute follows a blow-up between Mr Riley and CLP President Ron Kelly last week that sources allege ended in Mr Riley calling Mr Kelly a “c***”.

Mr Riley had been listening in to a CLP management meeting via phone from Canberra at the time of the argument, despite not being a member of the management committee.

Senator McMahon refused to say why her staff member had been listening in on the meeting.

Senator McMahon spoke about her marriage breakdown before flying out to Uganda where she is attending a Commonwealth Parliamentary Association conference.