Councillor Thang Ngo is passionate about empowering the local community.  

For the past eight years, he has done this through his work as an elected local government councillor in Fairfield, one of Australia’s most culturally diverse local government areas.

As a Councillor, he has taken up many key community issues: 

• Policing and Drugs: He successfully lobbied for a NSW Parliamentary into policing in Cabramatta (June 2000), member of PECAC the NSW Police Commissioner’s Police and Ethnic Community Advisory Committee (2001), awarded Churchill Fellowship to study ways to improve relationship between police and ethnic communities (2002)
• Opposed over development: fought against Meriton redevelopment of Lansdowne Caravan Park (2003), Linbar development (2007)
• Local Amenities: fought to find home field for local soccer team (2001), free toilet facilities for Cabramatta (2006), fought for locals to access council sporting fields leased to clubs (2007)
• Supported refugees and multiculturalism: marched in support of asylum seekers (2001), successfully removed racist content on ninemsn (2001)

Fighting problem gambling and in particular the spread of pokies in the local community has been a campaign Cr Ngo has been fighting since 2000.  Key milestones include:

• Opposing sale of Mekong Club to Penrith Panthers (Jan 2000)
• Blocked 24 hour trading for a local hotel (Aug 2000)
• Opposed extended trading hours for Club Marconi (Apr 2002)
• Successfully stopped Canberra Casino from running bus shuttle services to Cabramatta (Aug 2002)
• Opposed local venues from seeking exemptions to the six hour pokies shutdown (Apr 2003)
• Successfully stopped local pawnbroker from advertising in Mounties members magazines (Dec 2004)
• Called for freeze on pokies (Oct 2007)
• Opposed additional pokies for Canley Heights RSL (Oct 2007)
• Announced a local problem gambling summit (Jan 08)
• Supported ban of ATM in gambling venues (Feb 08)
• Re-iterated opposition to Panthers milking community dry with pokies to support their sporting club (Mar 08)

For more information, visit www.thangngo.com

Deeply committed to a fair and caring society, Thang has been a tireless campaigner for solutions to local issues, including the problem gambling situation.