The Cobar Local Aboriginal Land Council has been placed under administration, but it doesn’t spell the end for the Aboriginal organisation. 

The Cobar LALC had suffered from outdated housing policies, a history of infighting, and insufficient board members, continuing with four members instead of seven.

In August, administrator Tim Gumbleton was appointed to the organisation to help make sure it could continue.

“Governance had deteriorated…You tend to find that when you’ve got a board that (isn’t full) and you haven’t got a CEO in the chair either,” Mr Gumbleton

“With everything else that’s happening in the community, and covid in the middle…it was a really hard time. A lot of nonprofits across all the regional areas struggled. 

While Mr Gumbleton has made sure that the LALC continues to operate, when he’s finished his work, it will look a lot different. 

“Once we stabilise as a land council…they elect a new board from the membership.”

“If you’re a member of the land council, you can put your hand up for a board role. Unless you were on the board previously, because the people that were there at the time of my appointment are disqualified as board members and can’t stand again,” Mr Gumbleton said. 

Despite the work to rebuild ahead, Mr Gumbleton and the Cobar community are both positive about the future of the LALC. 

“We’ve had significant interest in the CEO role from all areas including Cobar.”

Already, three meetings have been held to build new interests for membership and potential board members. 

“They’re excited to get back to position, they really want to have regular meetings, which is great because the more you engage with those meetings, the confidence builds really quickly.”

Local Aboriginal Land Councils exist to support all Aboriginal people in the area, regardless of whether they are traditional owners. 

“It’s not just for one small group of people…that’s why it’s so important.”

The next membership meeting is scheduled for December 18, welcoming new members to express their ideas for the future of the Cobar LALC.

“This is your chance to put your hand up," he said.