A copy of a Letter To The Editor of the Centralian Advocate:
Sir,
If the Aboriginal Medical Services (aka Congress) here in Alice Springs was serious about tackling the health promotion of the people they are supposed to be helping, then rather than pay exhorbitant salaries to questionably competent management and employees, they could buy back the liquor licence for the Todd Tavern and turn the building into a holistic health services centre.
This idea was first proposed by Barbara Curr well over a decade ago and has more recently been endorsed by Meredith Campbell so it’s not a new idea…it’s just one that should be implemented!!!
Time to get real. I’ve been in Alice Springs 17 years (next Thursday is my Alice-versary) and the increasing isssue of alcohol abuse with concommitant domestic violence etc. has seen that the progress towards better health outcomes has failed dismally. The senior management of Congress have been in those positions for at least 15 of those years. That’s an awful long time to achieve negative outcomes.
The buy-back investment would see a health centre established that focuses on better outcomes…and the sad plight of those who were seen on the ABC Lateline program last week could begin to be addressed. The property could easily be established as headspace Central with outsourcing of spaces to be rented by complimentary health service providers in this town to provide services to those outside the headspace cohort (12-26 year olds).
Time for CAAC (a shareholder in Centrecorp) to put it’s money where its mouth is. If Centrecorp can afford to buy K-Mart, they can afford to buy the Todd Tavern. And no…it’s not ‘the governments job’…it’s yours!!! Pay your share.
The spirit is inside each of us…not in a bottle.
Over to you, Congress.
Phil Walcott
IndependeNT Candidate for Greatorex
Alice Springs
www.philwalcott.com.au
