The executive, the mine and the corruption referral

7am

On a remote island in the Gulf of Carpentaria, there are two towns.

One is home to a thriving economy. It has a golf course, cinema and tennis courts. It’s the richest postcode in the Northern Territory. Most of the people who live there are white.

The other is home to the Anindilyakwa people - the Traditional Owners. The locals live just a few hundred metres from the world’s largest manganese mine. Here, life outcomes are worse than anywhere else in the country.

This jarring contrast raises questions about where the royalties of this mine are flowing – and why the Traditional Owners are seeing so little return to their community.

Now, the National Indigenous Australians Agency has referred the white chief executive of the Anindilyakwa Land Council to the National Anti-Corruption Commission over his plan to take a personal 10 per cent stake in a mining project on the island.

Today, Gunaikurnai and Wotjobaluk writer Ben Abbatangelo on the plan and the man who stood in its way.

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Guest: Gunaikurnai and Wotjobaluk writer Ben Abbatangelo