A Northern Land Council member has warned its current turmoil is damaging its reputation as an important authority that makes decisions about the lives of Aboriginal people.
The NLC resolved to have its finances examined in an audit amid allegations of the misuse of funds after the powerful Aboriginal organisation held two days of tense meetings.
Council member James Sing says many of the 83 members are worried about the alleged misuse by the leadership of public money that was supposed to help Aboriginal people and the effects of the bad publicity.
He accused interim CEO Jak Ah Kit of bullying other members to the point where they could not ask questions and left the meeting in anger on Friday.
"This is a sad day for Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory, we want to make a difference and show them (public) that we are competent in making our own decisions," he told reporters.
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"We as a land council and members need to demonstrate that with the responsibility placed upon the members and the wider use of public monies that we are accountable.
He pointed out that the now Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission was shut down over "misappropriation of funds and bad governance".
The NLC's nine-member executive or board - which is the subject of the allegations - and interim CEO, Jack Ah Kit, had been resisting the meeting ordered by Indigenous Affairs Minister Nigel Scullion.
Among the issues is that the NLC has leased its Darwin headquarters since 2007 from its own subsidiary the Aboriginal Investment Group for $1 million a year, compared to a market valuation that it should pay $685,000 to $710,000.
Also to be looked at will be a $4 million grant given to the NLC-owned Aboriginal Investment Group and numerous other loans between its entities whose board members are all land council executive members.
The NLC also provided loans totalling $345,000 to a company whose owner was an executive member.
Senator Scullion said he had confidence in the land council to deal with any "mischief" and that as a federal authority it was important it was respected
Mr Ah Kit said the conflict of interest claims and allegations about governance and spending were wrong but welcomed the audit.
He has blamed a poor culture among "highly paid" staff for the NLC's problems and not the board.
