The senior Yolngu Elder whose name was attributed to a letter published by News Corp columnist Andrew Bolt has issued a signed statement addressing the matter.
In a statement supplied to NITV News on Tuesday, Terry Yumbulul, a Yolgnu Warramiri Tribal Chief says that he was not the author of the letter published by Mr Bolt and contained in a blog post by the columnist on January 26.
"The statements attributed to me in that article, 'Yolngu Now Denounce this Aboriginal Historian Too’, are incorrect," Mr Yumbulul states.
"The words attributed to me criticising other Aboriginal leaders are also false. I made no such remarks.
"As a senior Yolngu elder, I can only speak alongside Yolngu clan nations of East Arnhem, and not for or on behalf of other First Nations clans."
A copy of the signed statement supplied to NITV News by Terry Yumbulul. Source: Supplied
In an exclusive interview with NITV News on Monday morning, Mr Yumbulul said that he was contacted by businesswoman Josephine Cashman regarding elements contained in the letter published by Bolt, but emphasised that he did not author the letter.
Mr Yumbulul took issue with several aspects of the letter published by Bolt and attributed to his name.
For example, the letter contained spelling errors that Mr Yumbulul said he would not make and contained a claim that Ms Cashman was bestowed with a leadership role within the "Yolgna" [sic] community.
