Thoughts to You from Yours Truly - ( TYYT ) - ( 81 ) - A Leadership Debacle - March 1, 2012
The Australian Labour Party ( ALP ) leadership contest has dominated the Australian media for the past 10 days ending in the seemingly overwhelming win for the incumbent , Julie Gillard. Or is it really a triumph for her or the party ?
Ask the ordinary Australian citizen in the street and you will find the answer. They overwhelmingly denounced the mud slinging from both sides namely, the Kevin Rudd and the Julie Gillard camps especially the latter. If you ask the better informed business sector there is general condemnation of the ensuing uncertainty that has brought volatility to the financial market.
While Rudd called upon " People Power " in a desperate attempt to overcome the caucus system in the party which favours Gillard the latter mobilized party heavy weights to support her. As predicted by the media as well as yours truly Rudd lost in an unprecedented winning edge for Gillard of 31 to 71 caucus votes despite the support from the leader of the House of Representative , the most senior and respected MP, Anthony Albanese who is the only man of conscience in this ugly leadership contest. The outcome is hardly surprising after an independent MP, Tony Windsor declared that he would not work with Rudd if he were elected. It would imply a break up of the ruling coalition leading to an immediate general election for which the ALP is not adequately prepared. This means that many incumbent Labour MPs will be voted out of office. Politicians being what they are meaning that they will do anything to stay in office the greatest majority of them naturally voted for Gillard.
The outcome is not really worth examining but the mud slinging is. There are so many ugly incidents of character assassination that I can only mention the worst offenders. First and foremost is Wayne Swan, the deputy PM - what a disappointing show ? Swan actually said Rudd never had any labour value. What ? Did I hear correctly ? A past Labour PM without Labour values ? You must be kidding me ! If that were true why did Mr. Swan swear loyalty to him while Rudd was in office ? Then there was Simon Crean , a former Labour Party leader who branded Rudd as a vicious traitor of the party. I suppose the devastating blow to Rudd was the fact that Gillard ignored Rudd's entire contribution during the Labour Party conference in Sydney. It was obvious that at the time Gillard had felt the monkey at her back that is Rudd and did not give him the time of day as she had anticipated that the leadership challenge is forthcoming. All the above incidences have put the hideous face of the politician in the fore front.
At this point, I must declare my own stand to avoid any conflict of interest. I am a retired accountant not subscribed to Labour values but a liberal individualist who believes in the human potential and a fair go for his mates through the democratic process and an enlightened market economy ( which is yet to be realized ). I have met Rudd once at a Labour organized charity dinner party and found him to be witty and approachable. I did not have the pleasure of meeting Gillard in person but it is generally fair to say that Rudd is a more charismatic figure. Most importantly, I voted for the Green in the hung parliament election back in 2010 as a protest vote against failed Labour policies under Rudd such as home insulation scheme, etc. Also, I detest the way in which " faceless men " conducted the Labour Party coup installing Gillard as the unelected PM ( though there has never been a directly elected PM due to the applicable constitutional law in Australia yet I as many voters did vote for Rudd's team back in 2007. No one, not even my own mother can take my God given right of voting Rudd out of office from me if I see fit to do so. Any other person who usurp my right is a thief and an affront to democracy and definitely an immoral crook ). Gillard backed by her full confidence of the 71 caucus votes declared confidently that had she been allowed to explain her personal circumstances in the coup Australian voters will know that she is not the disloyal back stabbing deputy under Rudd. Unfortunately, the fact that her PM inauguration speech which was prepared 14 days in advance of the sudden and fateful coup has shown otherwise. Let me suggest to her how this damning evidence might have been rebut. It is simply that the speech was done by the power brokers ( the so-called faceless men in the party ) without her knowledge. That could apparently have cleared her but not that easily. If this were the case her acceptance of the sudden offer on the day of the coup has made her an accomplice to the plot.
I must also suggest to Gillard not to bask herself in her overwhelming caucus support and her newly found confidence from the caucus votes because the voters have yet to speak in an upcoming election not more than 18 months away. She had caucus mandate given out of concern with their own skin which is obviously pale in the light of the legitimate national mandate from the people. Having criticized her misbehaviour I must say that Gillard seems to be a more organized person and a better business manager. Furthermore, she does not have an inflated ego like Rudd whom I hated for massing a 130 member delegation to the Copenhagen Environmental Summit in 2008 including a personal photographer like Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. This seems to me to be a criminal act when many of your fellow Australian citizens especially young working families and pensioners are having headaches balancing their daily grocery budgets. I almost forgot to mention that Rudd's 130 persons strong delegation had surpassed that of USA and thus was world number 1 largest to Rudd's delight. He has always prided himself on his achievements in preventing Australian from a recession in the 2008 global economic tsunami but one must ask at what expenses. Being a graduate in economics myself yours truly did warn that over spending without proper management spell future disaster. To force ahead with the home insulation scheme with a target of over 1 million homes to be insulted at tax payers' expense within 8 months is a physical impossibility. There is simply no way that one can procure enough qualified technicians to do it. Tragically, at least 4 under trained workers died as a result and a number of related fires that had destroyed innocent lives and property. This is clearly an indication of flying in the face of facts on the part of Rudd in order to achieve his immortality in history as being the leader of the only developed country to have withstood the 2008 economic tsunami.
Am I implying that I am voting for the Liberal coalition in the next election ? I wished I were. Unfortunately, most sensible Australian voters are not offered anything better by the Liberal camp. When given a chance to explain their proposal to get the federal budget back into the black in a TV debate back in 2010 they could not even give some clear figures on the excuse that Labour might sabotage their plans. Furthermore, their ultra conservative ideas have failed to map out a future for the country. That was what made it necessary for me to cast a protest vote which I was glad see the appearance of a hung parliament back in 2010.
One more point that I must highlight for voters' reference. The average voter usually chooses who seems to be the best candidate as if any particular candidate is indispensable. As a matter of fact, the world will go on regardless of who is PM. All public servants should be grateful for being given the chance by their fellow citizens to hold public office. It is a special privilege and a rare opportunity to get one's name in history plus a fat remuneration package and other life time benefits. The only other profession that can boast of providing the same rare opportunity is the entertainment profession but with much less possible historical honour waiting in the wings. Therefore, doing a good job is a matter of course for public servants while being scorned upon for bad behaviour is also part and parcel of this rare profession call politics. Voters should not feel indebted to any politician who allocates a part of the public budget for a particular benefit that you are entitled to out of taxes paid by us and our working children. It is, in fact, our own money.
I could go on forever but this blog must end somehow. Let me simply say this to my mates down under. Always go back to the basic principles when assessing arguments given by politicians or anyone for that matter. Please refer to my following past blogs to see if you agree with what I said regarding points raised in the present blog. Your precious comments are most welcome if you see fit to comment or disagree with my views. That is how progress is made and, hence, the need for democracy as Voltaire had once said :- " I disagree with everything that you say but I will defend to the death your right to say it.".
My previous blog on Australian democracy :- http://jkhcforum.blogspot.com.au/2010/08/lesson-on-democracy-from-australian.html
My previous blog on the independent federal MP :- http://jkhcforum.blogspot.com.au/2010/08/short-message-to-so-called-australian.html
My previous blog on the 2010 hung parliament :- http://jkhcforum.blogspot.com.au/2010/08/where-do-australians-go-from-here.html
My previous blog on the basis of democracy :- http://jkhcforum.blogspot.com.au/2010/11/thoughts-to-you-from-yours-truly-46.html
My previous blog on Confronting this chaotic world :- http://jkhcforum.blogspot.com.au/2011/03/thoughts-to-you-from-yours-truly-63.html
My previous blog entry on an enlightened market system :- http://jkhcforum.blogspot.com.au/2009/04/financial-tsunami-ft-way-forward-20.html
My Facebook note on politics and politicians :- https://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=151895018201770
ABC report on the earlier Australian Labour Party leadership that ousted Kevin Rudd in 2010 :- http://www.abc.net.au/archives/80days/stories/2012/01/19/3412173.htm
JKHC.
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