The Registrar of Indigenous Corporations, Anthony Beven, has today placed the Nguiu Club Aboriginal Corporation under special administration.
The club was initially registered in 1985 as the Nguiu Club Association Incorporated under the Northern Territory Associations Act. It operates a social club on Bathurst Island just north of Darwin and is an important social and cultural hub for the residents of the island. The club has 473 members and provides employment for 15 permanent and casual staff.
The management committee has been unable to resolve serious financial problems at the club in recent years and approached the Registrar for assistance. The Registrar attended a meeting of the community and members in November 2015 to discuss how his office could help the association to access specialist support to save their club.
The members of the association held a special general meeting on 18 December 2015 and voted to transfer the club’s registration to the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 (CATSI Act). At the same time the members and directors unanimously requested the appointment of a special administrator by the Registrar to help resolve the club’s financial difficulties.
Staff from the Registrar’s office provided assistance with the transfer process, including helping the club to design a new rule book, and attended the special general meeting to answer any questions from members.
The Registrar has appointed Mr Austin Taylor and Mr Stuart Reid from the Darwin-based firm of Meertens Chartered Accountants as the joint special administrators of the corporation until 29 April 2016.
‘My office has responded quickly to the calls for assistance from the directors and members of the Nguiu Club,' said Mr Beven. ‘The transfer of the club to the CATSI Act has enabled it to access a range of services that will be essential in improving its financial position and governance.’
Background
For more information about special administrations see the Registrar’s fact sheet Special administrations: what members and directors should know available at www.oric.gov.au.
Media contact
Lisa Hugg
(02) 6146 4738
ORIC MR1415-08
4 January 2016
Special administrators
Mr Austin Taylor (08) 8418 8900
Mr Stuart Reid (08) 8941 3122
Meertens Chartered Accountants