In short:
A senior public servant responsible for child and family support in Central Australia was simultaneously running a National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) provider company in Alice Springs.
asserted
servant → run → Springs
The Department of Children and Families has confirmed it forwarded a complaint about her involvement in the NDIS provider Life Aspects to an integrity process.
asserted
it → confirm → process
The status of the process remains unclear.
uncertain
status → remain → process
Documents obtained by the ABC show the department has recently strengthened its internal conflict of interest procedures, especially for staff with the power to influence NDIS referrals.
asserted
department → obtain → referrals
A senior Northern Territory public servant responsible for child and family services in Central Australia spent nearly three years as the sole director of a private National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) provider in Alice Springs, and for 15 months also owned a 50 per cent stake in the business's parent company.
asserted
servant → spend → company
The Department of Children and Families plays a significant role in the NDIS system in the NT, with the most recent figures from 2024 showing more than 300 children in its care had active NDIS plans.
asserted
children → play → plans
An ABC investigation has confirmed public servant Kudzai Mutsunge ran the NDIS business Life Aspects while holding senior roles in the Department of Children and Families, and held shares in the business's parent company, Japhin The Teacher Pty Ltd, from December 2024 to February 2026.
asserted
Mutsunge → confirm → February
Life Aspects is registered to provide a range of disability services, including assistance with independent living and support coordination, an area that involves arranging other providers for people with disability.
asserted
that → register → disability
The ABC has seen no evidence that any child in the care of the department was a Life Aspects client.
asserted
child → see → department
The department has referred a complaint about a potential conflict of interest to an internal integrity process.
asserted
department → refer → process
Ms Mutsunge wound up her directorship and shareholding in Life Aspects earlier this year, one week before an anonymous complaint was sent to the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission in March.
asserted
complaint → wind → March
A separate complaint went to the Department of Children and Families in August, from the Alice Springs-based Disability Advocacy Service (DAS).
asserted
complaint → go → Service
On August 21, the department told the service it had referred the information "through the appropriate internal integrity processes" and was coordinating with the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) "where relevant".
asserted
it → tell → Agency
In response to questions from the ABC, the department declined to say whether Ms Mutsunge had declared a potential conflict of interest or sought approval for outside work, saying it could not comment on individual employment or conduct matters.
uncertain
it → decline → employment
The ABC understands Ms Mutsunge quit the department on September 11.
asserted
Mutsunge → understand → September
Ms Mutsunge said she did not "endorse or agree to the allegations or characterisations" put to her by the ABC about whether her roles presented a potential conflict of interest, and said she could not respond to further questions within the timeframe provided.
uncertain
she → say → timeframe
Under the NT public service code of conduct, employees must declare any perceived, potential or actual conflicts of interest in writing to their chief executive.
asserted
employees → declare → executive
The department's acting chief executive Karen Broadfoot said it had "zero tolerance" for a failure to declare a conflict.
asserted
it → act → conflict
Ms Broadfoot said that where integrity matters involved the NDIS, the department would also coordinate with the Australian Federal Police when relevant.
asserted
department → say → Police
The NDIA said it could not comment on ongoing investigations.
uncertain
it → say → investigations
DAS chief executive Scott Richardson said government officials needed to be held to a higher standard on potential NDIS conflicts, to ensure they "don't have access to participant information that they could then benefit from, or family could benefit from".
uncertain
family → say → that
In a meeting in March, Ms Mutsunge reportedly told DAS staff that she was "operationally removed" from placement decisions, and denied any role in referring children to NDIS providers.
uncertain
she → tell → providers
Department toughens conflict of interest rules
As well as written declarations, the public service code of conduct in force since 2022 requires employees to get written approval from their chief executive before taking paid work outside the service.
asserted
toughens → toughen → service
The department went further and endorsed its own conflict of interest policy on May 29, 2025, while Ms Mutsunge was still sole director of Life Aspects.
uncertain
Mutsunge → go → Aspects
The policy required staff to consider their own interests and those of their family, identify any conflicts and report them.
asserted
policy → require → them
It made clear conflicts were common and not necessarily a problem, so long as they were declared and managed.
asserted
they → make → ?
Then on June 12, 2026, three months after Ms Mutsunge had offloaded Life Aspects, the department policy was updated.
asserted
policy → offload → Aspects
The updated version created a tougher rule, which is being phased in, that all staff must complete an annual declaration covering any business or financial interests, including any jobs outside of the department, and submit paperwork saying "nil" if they have none.
asserted
they → update → none
The updated policy also includes extra measures for "higher risk" staff, specifically identifying staff who could influence referrals to NDIS providers.
uncertain
who → update → providers
Mr Richardson said it was a "real concern" that the policy was tightened soon after his organisation raised the case with the department, and questioned if the new policy was a "rushed reaction" while investigations were still underway.
asserted
investigations → say → department
Ms Mutsunge held senior roles in the department before she quit.
asserted
she → hold → department
In June 2024, a document published by the NT government said she was Director of Remote Families for the Central Australia region.
asserted
she → publish → region
By March this year, she was using an email signature that described her as Director, Youth and Family Support for the same region.
asserted
that → use → region
The NT's Public Guardian and Trustee, which acts for adults under guardianship orders, told the ABC two of the people it represents had been clients of Life Aspects in the past.
asserted
it → act → past
The restructure and the business with no identifiable owner
ASIC documents reveal that Life Aspects was restructured over four days in late February and early March this year.
asserted
Aspects → reveal → February
They show Ms Mutsunge set up two new companies and then signed away her directorships on the day each was registered.
asserted
each → show → day
She also transferred her stake in the parent company back to Japhin Nyengera, the man who owned the other 50 per cent of its shares, and who recorded the same Alice Springs address as her in ASIC filings.
asserted
who → transfer → filings
The Life Aspects companies then passed to Freejoy Murukayi, a New South Wales man whose LinkedIn profile describes him as an electrical technician working for mining giant BHP.
asserted
profile → pass → BHP
He now holds the sole share in Life Aspects Investments, which owns Life Aspects, but ASIC documents show his shareholding is "non-beneficial", meaning he holds the business for someone else.
asserted
he → hold → someone
ASIC filings previously listed the new parent company's registered address as occupied by "The Trustee" at the same address Ms Mutsunge had used for Life Aspects, but the beneficial owner can no longer be identified from public records.
asserted
owner → list → records
…and 17 more, not listed.
The Aporia