Jacinta Nampijinpa Price speaks about Voice to Parliament at Dubbo

Northern Territory senator and Shadow Minister for Indigenous Australians Jacinta Nampijinpa Price shared her concerns around the Voice while speaking alongside Parkes MP Mark Coulton and federal leader of The Nationals, David Littleproud, at Dubbo on Friday.

One of the most prominent figures in the 'no' campaign, Senator Price said she feared more division will be created as a result of the referendum and the lack of detail around the Voice was hugely concerning.

READ ALSO:

The senator was part of a marathon debate earlier this week which resulted in the bill for the referendum to be passed and she claimed during that 10 hours she pushed the government for a guarantee this would improved the lives of marginalised Indigenous Australians and was unable to get an answer.

"Whatever the outcome of this referendum, I believe it is the most divisive referendum that our nation has ever experienced," Senator Price said.

"Whatever the outcome is, there is going to have to be a lot of work done in terms of reconciliation.

"I think there are those of us, certainly community members here in Dubbo, living reconciliation. They're just getting on with it and that's what needs to happen going forward.

"They understand that we're all Australians and we're all capable and we should be supporting Australians on the basis of need, not race."

The visiting politicians and Mr Coulton spoke on Friday at Wilay Cafe, run by Regional Enterprise Development Institute (REDI-E).

REDI.E and it's chief executive, Gamillaroi man Peter Gibbs, work to create opportunities, positive career pathways and economic development for Indigenous and non-Indigenous people, and Senator Price said initiatives like that and empowering Indigenous people and groups should be the focus rather than bureaucracy in the nation's capital.

"They're filling those jobs with capable individuals who are realising their own potential and pushing forward and demonstrating to their families and their community members they can achieve and it's not because of their heritage, but because they're capable human beings," she said.

"That's where the Voice goes wrong, because it suggests Indigenous Australians are inherently disadvantaged because nothing more than our race and the Albanese government is seeking to constitutionally enshrine the welfare mentality, basically."

The latest NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) statistics show the number of Aboriginal men and women in prison is increasing.

Federal minister for Indigenous Australians Linda Burney recently stated the Voice to Parliament will help close the gap, as "it's only by listening to communities that we can make better policies that lead to better outcomes".

Senator Price said, instead, more was needed to look into issues like family and domestic violence to help break the trend.

"If we tackle them head-on we might actually see a decrease in those incarceration rates, we'll see family homes better, kids going to school, adults in jobs, and we would see the overall situation get better," she said.

"But we don't focus on that. We focus on, again, this as a racial issue as opposed to the reason 'why are these Australians going through high incarceration rates?'

"That's where the focus needs to be."

The senator urged those in the Dubbo region and across the country to seek out more detail ahead of the vote, which is likely to be held in October.

"Given there is so little detail, it's a dangerous proposition to get behind," she said.

"It's a Trojan horse. I would suggest you look towards your community leaders and see what is already on offer in your community. We shouldn't be divided along the lines of race in this country. It's the worst possible outcome which could take place."

Reading this on mobile web? Download our news app. It's faster, easier to read and we'll send you alerts for breaking news as it happens.Download in the Apple Store or Google Play.