Matt Cunningham: Chansey Paech and Josh Burgoyne scandals

There has been a further erosion in trust of those who occupy the absurdly grand building at the end of Mitchell St, writes Matt Cunningham.

The leaf blower is working overtime outside Parliament House.

It’s been raining for three days and there’s barely a leaf to be seen.

But one leaf is one too many on the first day of Parliamentary sittings.

The chauffeur-driven Lexuses arrive in the private car park, giving ministers the opportunity to enter this grand building away from the prying eyes of the proletariat.

An email arrives from the Office of the Speaker. Permission has been granted to film the honourable members on the parliament’s floor during the grand occasion of the official opening ceremony.

But there’s a reminder. “Business wear including a tie is to be worn in the Chamber.”

This might all seem like petty and trivial information.

But it’s important background to understand the hubris that can take over those elected to this place.

And it seems the longer they are there and the higher they rise, the worse it becomes.

Deputy Chief Minister Chansey Paech has defended his former shareholding in alcohol wholesaler Metcash. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

This week we were treated to the extraordinary story of Deputy Chief Minister Chansey Paech and scandal surrounding his share holdings.

Paech made the curious decision in May 2022 to buy about $450 worth of shares in Metcash, a company that distributes food, groceries and liquor, including to outlets in Alice Springs.

His purchase of these shares came just two months before the sunsetting of the Commonwealth’s Stronger Futures legislation, which had banned alcohol in many smaller Aboriginal communities and town camps.

There have subsequently been many questions asked about why the minister bought these shares, and whether they had influenced any decision he has made or been involved in when in the cabinet room.

Most notably, the NT government’s decision not to extend the alcohol bans under its own legislation when Stronger Futures expired.

That was something that only happened after the Prime Minister flew to Alice Springs last January and forced his NT counterparts to see sense.

Paech has offered many explanations this week.

But none of them quite exonerate him.

Yes, he declared the shares on the members’ register as required.

But did he declare a conflict of interest when cabinet was discussing the alcohol bans, as required under the Ministerial Code of Conduct?

Northern Territory Chief Minister Eva Lawler. Picture: Fia Walsh

Chief Minister Eva Lawler said on Tuesday she couldn’t recall him doing so.

Paech has refused to say, citing cabinet confidentiality.

He’s also argued that the Commonwealth was responsible for the decision.

While it is true it was Commonwealth legislation that was ending, it was the Northern Territory Government that had a decision to make when Stronger Futures expired.

It received a great deal of advice on this issue from many quarters including Central Australian Aboriginal Congress, Federal Labor MP Marion Scrymgour, CLP Senator Jacinta Price and Hospitality NT.

It ignored all of it and allowed the grog to return.

Paech argues he was not the alcohol policy minister.

But he was a member of the cabinet, we don’t know if he declared a conflict, and, publicly at least, he was the most vocal advocate of allowing the alcohol to return.

This was a “race-based policy” as he again reminded us again this week, a day before introducing legislation that would mean the NT’s Children’s Commissioner needs to be Aboriginal.

Paech also says it was a small amount of money.

That probably won’t fly with too many voters who would barely have enough money to pay the mortgage in a cost-of-living crisis, let alone throw a spare $450 into the share market.

But perhaps Paech’s biggest failing was the predicament he put his boss in.

As one Labor source said this week: “The deputy has one job and that’s to protect the leader.” Instead of being protected, Eva Lawler spent the week trying to defend the inexplicable actions of her deputy.

Braitling MLA Josh Burgoyne. Picture: Fia Walsh

The only saving grace for Labor this week was the debacle the CLP found itself in on Friday over revelations of a car crash last August involving Braitling MLA Josh Burgoyne.

He and Opposition Leader Lia Finocchiaro have serious questions to answer about who knew what and when about the incident, which is likely to see Burgoyne face a criminal charge.

Labor might think the week ended in a nil-all draw.

Perhaps it did in a purely political sense.

But there has been a further erosion in trust of those who occupy the absurdly grand building at the end of Mitchell St.

At least the gardens are clean.