Neville Perkins

Neville George Perkins OAM, (born 4 January 1952), is an Australian politician and public servant.

Early life

Perkins is a descendant of the Eastern and Central Arunta peoples who was born and bred at Mbantua, Alice Springs. He attended Newington College (1963–1969), commencing in the preparatory school, Wyvern House.^[1] He is a graduate of the University of Sydney.

Career

Pekins was an Australian Labor Party member of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly from 1977 to 1981, representing the electorate of MacDonnell. He was the first indigenous person in Australia to hold a shadow ministry in an Australian parliament, and subsequently became the party's deputy leader. Perkins resigned in 1981, not long into his second term.

He later served as Secretary of the New South Wales Department of Aboriginal Affairs from 1987 to 1988. He is the Founder of the Central Australian Aboriginal Congress, a Founder of the Central Australian Aboriginal Legal Aid Service, the first Aboriginal General Manager of Aboriginal Hostels Limited, and the first Aboriginal General Manager of Imparja Television Pty Ltd. He is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Management.^[2]

He left the position of Imparja Television Director soon after a legal battle with the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance. He also briefly worked as director of UNSW's Aboriginal Education Program, and alleged his predecessor, Anne Martin, used the centre to help Democrats Senator Aden Ridgeway when she was his campaign manager. Mr Perkins left that position also, and wrote to the federal government seeking an inquiry into alleged mismanagement by centre staff and misuse of facilities over a number of years. Again, following a disagreement with people in the workplace, this time at National Indigenous Television (NITV), he left the position and called on the Federal Government to inquire into NITV.

Honours

• Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for service to Aboriginal welfare, 26 January 1984.^[3]

References