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Speaker 1: Many of the local council positions are still up in

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Speaker 1: the air today, with the position of mayor and Alice Springs,

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Speaker 1: Lichfield and Darwin too close to call at this point

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Speaker 1: in time. Now. One area where we do seem to

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Speaker 1: have a clear winner though, is Palmerston Incumbent Athena Pasco

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Speaker 1: Bell well in front on fifty point four percent of

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Speaker 1: the votes with forty eight percent of the total votes counted.

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Speaker 1: Now joining us on the line is Athena Pasco Bell.

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Speaker 1: Good morning to you, Athena.

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Speaker 2: Good morning, Katie, Athena.

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Speaker 1: How are you feeling things are looking very favorably for

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Speaker 1: you at this point? I mean, is it too early

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Speaker 1: to call? Or do you reckon you've got in the bag.

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Speaker 2: I think it's going to be difficult to lose it

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Speaker 2: from here, but looking forward to the remaining postal votes

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Speaker 2: coming through and then it will all be done and

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Speaker 2: dusted essentially.

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Speaker 1: Now, what were people telling you at the polling booths, Athena,

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Speaker 1: It seemed to me like people are pretty happy with

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Speaker 1: how things are operating in Palmerston at the moment.

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Speaker 2: Think that was the key issue for most people was

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Speaker 2: that they're very happy with the way councils been operating

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Speaker 2: and they didn't really want to see a change and

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Speaker 2: that was reflected in the way people voted. So you know,

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Speaker 2: that's the way it is, and I'm very pleased that's

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Speaker 2: what people are thinking out there and happy to return.

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Speaker 1: Yeah. I mean for you, how does it feel? How

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Speaker 1: many terms is this for you? Would? Is this your third?

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Speaker 1: Will it be a third?

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Speaker 2: This will be my third term as mayor, but I

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Speaker 2: was sitting as an alderman prior to that as well.

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Speaker 2: I was first elected in October of twenty fifteen, so

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Speaker 2: it's coming up to ten years for me.

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Speaker 1: Ten years, I mean it's a long time sort of

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Speaker 1: in office, but a good amount of time when it

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Speaker 1: comes to actually, you know, contributing to the community.

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Speaker 2: Yes, and you know it is a lot of effort.

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Speaker 2: I don't think people actually understand the effort that the

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Speaker 2: council puts in all of us. There's an awful amount

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Speaker 2: of reading to do every fortnight, sometimes up to four

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Speaker 2: hundred pages of reports. We have a lot of community engagement.

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Speaker 2: We're out and about, we attend a lot of council

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Speaker 2: events and activities as well, and you know, it's really

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Speaker 2: good to see our community thriving under the last two

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Speaker 2: councils in particular, and you know, really happy to see

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Speaker 2: it continue.

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Speaker 1: I know it's very early to tell, and there is

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Speaker 1: obviously still you know, still quite a few votes to

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Speaker 1: be counted, but it does look, I mean like with

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Speaker 1: in terms of some of the aldermen or the counselors

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Speaker 1: I should say as well, looks like there could be

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Speaker 1: a couple of new faces. Is that how you're sort

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Speaker 1: of seeing it at this point.

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Speaker 2: Look, there definitely will be because we had two vacancies

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Speaker 2: coming into the election, so there will be at least

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Speaker 2: two new members. We are still hoping that we can

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Speaker 2: retain the existing council members because they have done a

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Speaker 2: really good job looking after the community and overseeing the

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Speaker 2: governance of the organization for the last two terms. But yeah,

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Speaker 2: as you mentioned, it's a bit too early to tell

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Speaker 2: for all the council of votes. But once the final

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Speaker 2: postal votes come in and the preferences are redistributed, will

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Speaker 2: have an answer there for you.

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Speaker 1: What's going to be on the top of your agenda

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Speaker 1: when the council is sworn in and when the dost

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Speaker 1: settles following the election, and once you see the makeup

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Speaker 1: of that council. You know what's really going to be

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Speaker 1: your focus this term.

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Speaker 2: The first off, we're going to have to do a

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Speaker 2: health check on our Community Plan, which is our strategic document,

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Speaker 2: to make sure that we are still meeting what the

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Speaker 2: community expectations are for the council to deliver. Then we've

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Speaker 2: also got some by law review, so we've moved forward

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Speaker 2: our public place by laws, so that'll be a large

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Speaker 2: piece of work that will hopefully do over the next

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Speaker 2: two or three years and have some new public place

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Speaker 2: by laws in place to support our ranges and what

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Speaker 2: the community expectations are in public places. We also have

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Speaker 2: some large infest structure projects to deliver, so we secured

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Speaker 2: ten million dollars from the Comwealth's Government at the last

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Speaker 2: election for the delivery of the library and community hall

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Speaker 2: at the Coally Community Hub. The construction of the pump

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Speaker 2: track down there is also hoping to start towards the

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Speaker 2: end of this year as well, and we also have

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Speaker 2: ready to go plans for the Driver Community Center redevelopment

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Speaker 2: as well. We're just trying to secure some grant fundings

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Speaker 2: for that. So there's still quite a lot of work

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Speaker 2: to do. My focus is always on the governance of

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Speaker 2: the organization and making sure things are done properly. So

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Speaker 2: you know, that will remain my skills now as a

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Speaker 2: lawyer obviously assist in making sure that those things are

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Speaker 2: happening appropriately, and so yeah, I don't have other than that.

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Speaker 2: I don't really have any huge plans, but just making

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Speaker 2: sure the organization is functioning properly.

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Speaker 1: Well, Lasina, it is going to be interesting, I guess,

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Speaker 1: over the coming days to see, you know, how those

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Speaker 1: votes all sort of shape up, who ends up on council.

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Speaker 1: And it's going to be interesting, not just you know,

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Speaker 1: out in Palmerston, but as we see those numbers come

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Speaker 1: in for some of the other areas around the Northern

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Speaker 1: Territory as well. One of the you know, the things

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Speaker 1: that I have noticed, and certainly after talking to the

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Speaker 1: electoral commissioner yesterday, is you know, when you look at

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Speaker 1: the number of votes those the voter turnout seems to

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Speaker 1: be down. I don't know how it was for you

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Speaker 1: out in Palmerston. It's disappointing to see those numbers down.

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Speaker 1: But the other thing that was really disappointing was some

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Speaker 1: of the you know, the foul kind of rumors and

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Speaker 1: stuff that we're being spread around the place. Not so much,

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Speaker 1: I don't think for you guys out in Palmiston, but

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Speaker 1: certainly in Darwin, like do you think we need to

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Speaker 1: have a bit of a rethink around some of the legislation.

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Speaker 1: And I know that that's not for you to decide

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Speaker 1: as the mayor, but as somebody who's run and seen

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Speaker 1: some of what's gone on, do we need a bit

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Speaker 1: of a rethink?

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Speaker 2: Absolutely? I think it was absolutely discuss things some of

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Speaker 2: the conduct that occurred, particularly online social media. There needs

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Speaker 2: to be a bit more accountability for people who make

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Speaker 2: those sorts of statements and some truth in political advertising

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Speaker 2: as well, which we only see in South Australia and

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Speaker 2: the Act, but you know there was some of it

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Speaker 2: going on in Palmerston as well. And I'm not going

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Speaker 2: to repeat some of what was said, but you know,

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Speaker 2: really disappointing that people think that they can put stuff

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Speaker 2: out like that to try and influence people's voting. People

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Speaker 2: don't have time. Electoral Commission's position is that people need

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Speaker 2: to make an assessment about what's true and what's not,

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Speaker 2: but most people don't have time to sit there for

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Speaker 2: hours and research information about each candidate to determine who's

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Speaker 2: telling the truth and who's not. And it's just really

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Speaker 2: horrible when you know, people like myself, people like Sam Western,

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Speaker 2: We've got children, children are on social media and reading

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Speaker 2: absolutely disgraceful things about their parents which are not true. Yeah,

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Speaker 2: so you know, it can then lead to other issue

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Speaker 2: that at the school, the children feel vulnerable, they might

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Speaker 2: be subject to bullying. It's just simply not okay. And

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Speaker 2: especially when you're seeing people who aspire to be politicians

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Speaker 2: making up stories, people being attacked up by other members

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Speaker 2: of the community, it just doesn't set a good tone

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Speaker 2: for those people.

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Speaker 1: I agree with you. I'll go a step further and

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Speaker 1: say I think it's absolutely bullshit. I think it's the

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Speaker 1: worst behavior some of what we've seen, some of the

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Speaker 1: absolute garbage being spread on social media. And the point

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Speaker 1: that you've made there about you know, people elected members

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Speaker 1: and those who put their hand up. You know, you've

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Speaker 1: got families, You've got people that see this stuff that

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Speaker 1: is not true. Now, to me, the fact that there's

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Speaker 1: you know, like the truth in political advertising, the fact

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Speaker 1: that you can go and do and say whatever you

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Speaker 1: please just about and get away with it to some

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Speaker 1: degree is just disgusting from my perspective when I think of,

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Speaker 1: you know, the different measures that we as journalists have

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Speaker 1: to take in terms of making sure that we've got

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Speaker 1: factual correctness. You know, you and I have spoken before

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Speaker 1: about ensuring that someone gets a right of reply. You know,

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Speaker 1: some of what goes on then on social media makes

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Speaker 1: it really difficult to then expect good people to put

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Speaker 1: their hands up to run.

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Speaker 2: That's right, and that's what we're seeing right across Australia.

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Speaker 2: It's a real problem in local government in South Australia.

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Speaker 2: They recently did a survey which found that a lot

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Speaker 2: of female counselors were resigning and long term counselors and

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Speaker 2: mayors because of the harassment I am bullying online. You know,

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Speaker 2: they've obviously had enough. But it just means then that

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Speaker 2: those people who behave like that end up winning. Yep,

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Speaker 2: we don't get good people then putting them hand up

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Speaker 2: to represent the community if they feel that they're going

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Speaker 2: to be subjected to an awful lot of horrible behavior,

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Speaker 2: both online and also in the council chamber because in

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Speaker 2: some cases the behavior of members in the council chamber

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Speaker 2: is also very poor. You know, things like swearing, name calling, belittling.

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Speaker 2: Rather than attacking the issue at hand, they're making personal

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Speaker 2: attacks and it gets very tiring. It can be really

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Speaker 2: distressing for the members either witnessing that sort of behavior

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Speaker 2: or being subjected to it as well. And so we're

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Speaker 2: not surprised that lesson less quality candidates are putting their

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Speaker 2: hand up when they know that they could be subjected

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Speaker 2: to that sort of behavior. Yeah.

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Speaker 1: Well, Asena Pasco Bell, I think it's a really interesting

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Speaker 1: discussion and I think it is one that needs to

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Speaker 1: be had now before we go into another election, whether

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Speaker 1: it be a Northern Territory government or council election. But

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Speaker 1: I certainly think that there needs to be a tightening

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Speaker 1: up of some of these rules before the next council election.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I agree.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, well, Athena, congratulations on all of the votes that

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Speaker 1: you've received so far. I know that you know we

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Speaker 1: won't quite call it yet, but it is certainly looking

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Speaker 1: like it's very positive for you. I appreciate your time

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Speaker 1: this morning, and no doubt we'll be talking to you

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Speaker 1: again very soon.

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Speaker 2: Thanks Katie, thank you