Two of northern Australia’s most powerful Aboriginal land councils have been raided by the national anti-corruption commission part of two separate investigations. The corruption watchdog's actions have reignited calls for a full enquiry into Australia’s land councils by the federal government.
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00:00Under investigation, the powerful Northern Land Council, raided by Australia's federal
00:07corruption watchdog.
00:09If there is corrupt behaviour, then the only people that lose out there are the families
00:19that are represented by these organisations.
00:24The watchdog confirming its operation in Darwin was part of an ongoing investigation.
00:29In a statement, the NLC's interim chief executive says it's in relation to a report I made earlier
00:35in the year on suspicion of corrupt conduct of a former employee.
00:40The NLC, which covers hundreds of thousands of square kilometres of Aboriginal land and
00:45sea in the NT, has not named the person at the centre of the allegations.
00:50Any investigations are welcomed to make sure that those land councils are operating fully
00:55and functionally to represent Aboriginal traditional owners on country.
01:00In a separate investigation, the remote Anandiliakwa Land Council was also raided on Wednesday,
01:07with the council's chief executive, Mark Hewitt, sacked from his role by the council's board
01:11later the same day.
01:13If they've decided to have that fresh start, then I think that's a very strong message
01:17from the board.
01:18Mr Hewitt had been under investigation for the alleged misappropriation of millions of
01:23dollars of mining royalties.
01:25He has not responded to a request for comment.
01:28In the wake of the raids, some say it's time for a robust federal inquiry of the nation's
01:33land councils.
01:34So we do need an inquiry.
01:37This is not about shutting them down, this is about making them better.
01:42The federal Indigenous Australians minister said in a statement that she expects strong
01:47governance and accountability from all land councils, but hasn't backed the calls for
01:52a deep dive into their dealings.
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