Toowoomba poll reveals lack of support for Indigenous Voice to Parliament campaign

A Toowoomba indigenous elder has called on the ‘Yes’ campaign for the Voice to Parliament to changing its messaging, after a shock poll showed a serious lack of support for the referendum.

A leading Toowoomba elder has urged proponents of the Indigenous Voice to Parliament to rethink their strategy and arguments, saying he was “horrified” by the state of the debate.

Uncle Wayne Fossey’s comments come after shock polling suggested an overwhelming majority of Toowoomba residents will not support the Voice, which goes to a national referendum at the end of the year.

The poll of more than 1700 residents, collected independently on behalf of Groom MP and ‘No’ campaigner Garth Hamilton, found 87 per cent of respondents would be voting against the Voice at this stage.

While Mr Hamilton said the result was unlikely to represent the final vote, the data suggests a strong level of concern among locals about what the referendum will mean.

Groom MP Garth Hamilton. Picture: Kevin Farmer

“What this poll shows is that the people of the Toowoomba region are overwhelmingly choosing unity over division,” he said.

“We are choosing the strength, confidence and certainty of a nation that recognises all people equally and we’re turning our back on this risky and divisive voice.”

Uncle Wayne, a proud Gurang Gurang and Yugambeh man and Elder-in-Residence at the University of Southern Queensland, said ‘Yes’ campaigners should be emphasising the meaningful part of the bid: enshrining First Nations people in the Australian constitution.

He also urged politicians, community leaders and other prominent figures to be assertive rather than defensive.

“I do have concerns with the process — the Yes campaign is constantly becoming disjointed,” Uncle Wayne said.

Uncle Wayne Fossey at the 179th Anniversary of the Battle of Meewah. Tuesday, September 13, 2022. Picture: Nev Madsen.

“It’s caused by a range of factors, there seem to be some individuals who can’t explain it very clearly.

“We’re not getting the argument out clearly enough (and) I’m a bit horrified by the process.

“We’re stuffing it up, we’re not getting to core arguments.”

Uncle Wayne feared the failure of the ‘Yes’ campaign could set back constitutional recognition by decades, while noting the referendum had sparked a rise in overt white supremacy and bigotry within both media and online.

“The loss of this is going to have ramifications for many years, I think of what it will mean for my kids and grandkids,” he said.

“What’s happened is we’ve created more division by the nature of our discussion — both parties have gone back into the trenches.

“(The racism has been) definitely the colonial discussion, people saying we wouldn’t have a house or money coming in if not for colonialism.”

The federal Groom electorate has long-been known for its conservatism, with the region narrowly voting ‘no’ in the 2017 marriage equality postal vote survey.

Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

The opposition to the Voice has been re-enforced by the interest in tickets for an upcoming event with noted ‘No’ campaigner Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, with more than 1200 people expected to pack out Rumours International on August 14.

Venue owner Jim Aspromourgos said he was shocked by the number of phone calls he had received about it.

“Our seating capacity is 1250 and the way I read it, it’s going to be a full house,” he said.

Senator Price’s Toowoomba on her national tour is being organised by Mr Hamilton, who said it was shaping as one of the largest to date.

“People everywhere want to hear from Jacinta, they know she has unique insights to offer and lived experience to call on,” he said.