‘I’m very angry about this’: Warren Mundine blows up in explosive press conference after PM’s Voice date announcement

Leading No campaigner Warren Mundine has erupted over the Voice to Parliament at a press conference that followed the Prime Minister unveiling the date of the referendum on Wednesday. 

The 67-year-old fronted the media in Hobart alongside fellow spokesperson for the No campaign Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price hours after Anthony Albanese revealed Australians would head to the polls on October 14.

Mr Mundine made a series of explosive claims in his address, accusing Mr Albanese of having “opened up the floor for the whole division to start” which he claims has sparked “horrible racial abuse”.

“He’s the one who started this, he’s the one who brought it out and if he thinks the Voice is the answer to fixing everything – this magic wand that is not answering the real question,” he said.

“The real question out there is about how do we help people with tremendous problems in Aboriginal communities and what’s his answer? ‘We’re gonna spend hundreds of millions of dollars’ which could be better spent in those communities – and him flying around the country with his happy, clapping crowd – it’s not going to do anything for these people.”

Mr Mundine has been one of the leading opponents to the referendum, revealing last month he had dealt with suicidal thoughts as a result of abuse he alleged he received from Yes campaigners and Indigenous Australians.

He said his fury over the Voice debate has been exacerbated by his fight to put an end to division.

“I’m very angry about this because I and my family have grew up under these segregation laws in the 1950s and 60s, we know what it was like. We fought for equality, we fought to be treated the same as every other Australian,” he said.

“We are here about building a Liberal democracy of freedoms and liberties and equality – not dividing our nation by race and I will swear on my mother and father’s grave that I will fight this and I’ll be out there every day – champion…the wonderful country that we’ve got which is not a racist group of people, we’re not a racist country.

“No more division, we are out there to crush this division.”

The Yes23 campaign was officially kickstarted by the Prime Minister’s date announcement at a rally in Adelaide on Wednesday.

The Voice to Parliament proposes the recognition of Australia’s Indigenous peoples in the nation’s constitution and an enshrinement of an advisory body that would consult with parliament on issues surrounding their communities.

The question to be put to the public on referendum voting day will be: “A proposed law: to alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.”

“Do you approve this proposed alteration?”

Mr Albanese’s long-awaited Voice announcement was met with loud applause from a crowd of more than 400 people in Adelaide. 

Despite his confidence in the proposal, the Prime Minister acknowledged there is still a big task ahead of referendum day to ensure maximum voter support is garnered from millions of undecided voters and communities that still remain largely disengaged with the cause. 

In his speech, he revved up volunteers who were already involved in campaigning efforts to engage with peers, friends and family in the coming weeks who may still be detached with messaging around the Voice referendum. 

“Keep knocking on doors, keep making calls, keep having those conversations. With your colleagues in workplaces across the land, because this change is supported by employers and unions alike,” Mr Albanese said. 

“With your teammates in every local club, because this is a cause backed by every single sporting code, with your fellow worshippers in every faith, because all faiths have given their support to this proposal. With multicultural communities, because they know what it means to celebrate and recognise tradition and culture. 

“Have those conversations with your family and friends, your parents and grandparents. With your energy and enthusiasm, this referendum can be won. And when Yes wins, all Australians will win.

“So in a spirit of generosity and optimism, vote Yes. In recognition of 65,000 years of history, vote Yes! With hope for a better future, vote Yes!”