Anthony Albanese Voice vote slammed by Aboriginal Tiwi Islands leader Uncle Francis Xavier

An Indigenous leader has flogged Anthony Albanese over the Voice referendum, saying his community “wasn’t told about it.”

Uncle Francis Xavier Kurrupuwu, an elder from the Tiwi Islands, which lie 53 miles off the coast of Darwin at the top end of the Northern Territory, said he and his community are “completely confused” about what the indigenous voice should give to parliament will contain.

“We were not told anything,” he said news.com.au.

‘It’s disgraceful. They say what they want to say without any consultation in the community.’

Mr Kurrupuwu, who was elected to the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly from 2012 to 2016 as a member of the Country Liberal Party, said the lack of information was ‘shocking’ and demanded the prime minister visit remote communities.

Mr Kurrupuwu wants to meet Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (pictured right with partner Jodie Haydon)

“We want to meet Mr. Albanese,” he said.

‘I expect them to be on site, they have to consult at a basic level. I’ve been involved in organizations and it’s the same old thing.

“We are still left in the dark as Aborigines in the Territory. I don’t think that will change.’

Mr Kurrupuwu said he would not vote for The Voice because he believed it would lead to concrete improvements for indigenous people in the areas of ‘education, health and employment’.

A spokesman for the Tiwi Land Council, where 80 percent of the 2,600 people living on the islands are indigenous, said it had yet to develop a formal position on the Voice.

The council also said they expected information sessions to be held in the Tiwi Islands later this year.

Lingiari Labor MP Marion Scrymgour, whose electorate includes the Tiwi Islands, said there was a lot of information available on the Voice and the proposal was the result of extensive consultation.

“Saying that there has been no consultation or information is the same as saying that there is no water in the sea.” said Mrs Scrymgour.

Ms Scrymgour promised there will be more face-to-face conversations with people in remote communities and she had recently visited the Tiwi Islands to talk about the voice and would soon do so again.

Mr Kurrupuwu says he doesn’t believe the vote will make a practical difference to Aboriginal people’s lives

Labor MP Marion Scrymgour (pictured) rejected claims that the people of the Tiwi Islands were not informed of the vote saying she had personally done so

One of the strongest campaigners against the Voice Northern Territory CLP Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price told the ABC on Tuesday that remote land councils had little understanding of the Voice.

“I know executive members of land councils, some of them are not necessarily literate, and this is the base we need to get back to,” she said.

“There’s a lot of work that needs to be done before we can get to the broader discussion. As long as we don’t do that, we can’t improve the situation on the ground.’

During a sometimes tantalizing interview with Hamish Macdonald, Senator Price said that “even the media … don’t listen to people in remote communities because it’s hard to get people from remote communities on the air on a radio show because of the language barrier that exists.” .

Sometime between October and December this year, Australians will be asked by referendum to approve the creation of the vote recognizing Indigenous peoples in the constitution.

The Voice will set up a body to “submit matters to the Parliament and Executive Government of the Commonwealth on matters pertaining to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.”

A referendum can only be held if it is approved by a vast majority of Australians and also voted for by a majority of states.