Another Politician

For

Territory Administratorship

THE Australian Government has selected Mr. P. J. S. Wise, leader of the Labour Party in the West Australian Parliament, and a former Premier, to be Administrator of the Northern Territory in succession to Mr. A. R. Driver, retired, and gone to a job in Italy.

As the Northern Territory now is under the Australian Department of Territories (responsible also for Papua-New Guinea, Nauru and Norfolk Island) the latter might have given some thought to the idea of appointing, to the post of Adminis trator of a Territory well within the tropics, some one of the many men in its service who have been trained and done well in the profession of tropical adminis tration. But, apparently, the Menzies Government, like the Socialist Govern ment, regards these Administratorships as gifts for politicians.

Although 80 per cent, of Australia’s innumerable members of Parliament are undistinguished Party hacks, Australian Governments generally seem convinced that a politician or ex-politician can fill any job within their gift. The result is that trained men frequently are ignored, while the inevitable politician appears in the highly-paid Australian Commissioner ships, Administratorships, Consulships and Ambassadorships.

Mr. Richards, now Administrator of Nauru, was a Labour Party leader in South Australia. Mr. Wilson, Adminis trator in Norfolk Island, was a member of the Commonwealth Parliament who ren dered political service to the Socialist

Government. Colonel Murray, Adminis trator of Papua-New Guinea, was a Socialist selection. He was a Professor of Agriculture at Queensland University.

He was not a politician: and he had not had any experience in administering a tropical territory.

Mr. Wise was born in Queensland 54 years ago; went to the West as a young man to be an adviser in tropical agri culture; had a distinguished political career as Minister for Lands and Agri culture, Treasurer and Premier; and is regarded as a man of outstanding ability.