Northern Territory MP Chansey Paech has tabled a previously unreleased report into Yipirinya School, accusing the CLP government of sitting on the document for months while the school was plunged into "turmoil" by the "actions of the former principal, while no one has taken responsibility.
In a late-night speech on Tuesday delivered under parliamentary privilege, the Labor Shadow Attorney-General condemned former principal Gavin Morris for pushing the independent Indigenous-language school to the "brink of collapse", and criticised federal Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price for having publicly backed the school during Mr Morris's tenure.
Mr Morris, who became principal in 2022, was convicted in October of choking two students and dragging two others while allegedly directing racist slurs at them. He is awaiting sentencing.
Yipirinya, a school for over 300 Indigenous students in both primary and secondary, has seen dwindling attendance, and this week saw its interim principal dismissed by the school's statutory manager.
Mr Paech — whose electorate of Gwoja is more than 75 per cent Indigenous — said he was given the report by a whistleblower "concerned at the lack of accountability and the burying of this report in a dark corner by the CLP government".
He claimed repeated requests for the document were ignored, saying he was "handballed from agency to agency" and offered only a briefing that was "nothing more than a whitewash and 'nothing to see here' exercise".
The tabled report, dated December 6, 2024 by an independent investigator for the NT Department of Education, followed multiple complaints to the Registrar of Non-Government Schools.
National Indigenous Times has viewed the report, which details alleged extensive mismanagement at the school, including:
- An $85,000 salary increase for Mr Morris, bringing his annual pay to $360,000.
- Allegations Mr Morris called staff while intoxicated, with staff resigning or taking stress leave because of their interactions with him.
- School funds were used to pay a $5,000 fine Mr Morris incurred after being found guilty of employing unregistered teachers.
- "Convincing verbal evidence" that students and parents felt intimidated by Mr Morris.
- Loans for vehicles to staff who could not repay them and who later left the NT with the vehicles.
- Payments to staff during extended periods when they were not working.
- More than $390,000 spent on a Todd Mall "interactive archive facility" without school council approval.
- No evidence of risk management for child safety.
- Despite many students suffering from Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD), staff not being equipped or supported in dealing with unsafe situations with students.
National Indigenous Times makes no assertions on the veracity of the claims, and notes only that they have been included in the report.
The report noted: "There have been over 60 complaints of bullying in the workplace in 2024, which reflects on the current culture at the school. The culture does not reflect a healthy and safe work environment." It is unclear how many those occurred whilst Mr Morris was principal.
Large sections of it were redacted, including parts detailing compliance with anti-discrimination laws and support for students with diverse needs.
"Given the shocking allegations and findings of the report, I have to wonder how bad and harmful the redacted sections may be," Mr Paech said.
In parliament, he argued: "Parents, caregivers and staff have told me deeply disturbing allegations of corruption, of fraud, of conduct, of sexual harassment, of misuse of funds."
"I've been told huge sums of money spent on travel and personal expenses with no oversight; children sent interstate after damaging school property without parental consent; child abuse concerns withheld and manipulated to support a political media strategy; children questioned by the former principal and the media without parental consent; children questioned about sexual assault allegations by a journalist with no parental or guardian consent and no qualified support."
The report said documentary evidence existed that showed a journalist from The Australian newspaper came to the school to interview children at the school. Mr Morris allegedly threatened the staff member with dismissal if they did not speak to the reporter. The conclusions as to the veracity of the claim are redacted.
Mr Paech praised the school's cultural importance but condemned those who had contributed to its instability.
"They should be ashamed of themselves for the damage they have caused," he said, adding that political representatives who failed to act "should have the moral backbone to stand up and help this school in its fight for a future".
He criticised the CLP government's handling of the situation, arguing: "It's coming up to a year with the special investigator completing his report. The silence and inaction of this government is reprehensible."
The NT Government has appointed statutory manager Stuart Reid to oversee the school and implement the report's recommendations.
While Mr Paech said "parents tell me things are slowly improving under the new management", he raised "serious concerns" about Mr Reid's approach.
"Staff report that proposals made months ago continue to be ignored. There's no transparency," Mr Paech alleged. "He's never been into a classroom; he's never spoken to the language teachers, yet he speaks for the school."
In response, Mr Reid told National Indigenous Times Yipirinya School has experienced a "significant reduction in its funding" for both 2025 and 2026 from its two main sources: the Australian and Northern Territory Governments, with funding tied to enrolments. He said the school received more funding than planned this year, resulting in the absence of the usual October funding release.
Additionally, the school is required to repay approximately $3.7 million to the Australian Government due to overpayment and will receive roughly 50 per cent of the government funding it received in 2024. It has reached an agreement with the Commonwealth to repay the 2025 overpayment over six years, Mr Reid said, with the first repayment not to be made until 2027 to "allow time for the School to grow student numbers during 2026".
Mr Paech claimed more than 20 Aboriginal staff — "working in meaningful jobs' —faced the possibility of losing their employment, arguing, "no one in government seems to care". These include long-serving teacher Doris O'Brien, the daughter of one of Yipirinya's founders and who has been teaching at the school since 1978.
"That is a disgrace, an absolute disgrace," Mr Paech said.
Mr Reid said, "Given the School's financial challenges, difficult decisions must be made to address those challenges. The position the School now finds itself in is that it still needs to significantly reduce the operating costs of Yipirinya School and that will unfortunately result in a number of jobs being removed from the School by way of redundancy."
He confirmed that three redundancies — all in non-student-facing roles — have already occurred, with no final decision yet made regarding further staff reductions.
Mr Paech also targeted Senator Price, asking: "Where are all the voices who previously were loud about Yipirinya School under the regime of the disgraced former principal?" Senator Price's mother, former NT Politician Bess Nungarrayi Price, was the assistant principal at the school before being dismissed last year.
Mr Paech said Senator Price and Senator Sarah Henderson had previously publicly backed the former principal and pushed for federal funding for what he described as Mr Morris's "pet project", stating: "The Senator's silence is damning."
"Where are they now when the school truly needs their help?" he asked. "It's now clear that their actions were nothing more than a politically motivated attempt to destabilise and gain power. It's disgusting and morally corrupt."
Senator Price is currently facing defamation proceedings brought by Central Land Council CEO Les Turner, during which the court heard Mr Morris was seeking Mr Turner's role in mid-2024. The Senator has denied knowing about the assault allegations at the time she advised Mr Morris not to pursue another job.
Mr Paech ended his remarks with a plea for accountability and urgent intervention.
"Anyone who uses a school for their own political agenda, who allows the erosion of the care and protection of children in an educational facility, is an absolute disgrace," he said. "We demand actions."
