|
||||
|
|
|
|
|
Published in Online Opion and The Canberra Times 3 February 2012 Grasping at gravitas, the man who would be Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, gave a staged performance of statesmanship at a Press Club lunch on the last day of January. Although his address was delivered in a steady manner with a calm voice, it remained, as is so often the case with Abbott, a delivery full of menace and suppressed anger. Abbott was attempting to threaten the Labor Party and bully their supporters. He came across not as a conservative ‘steady as she goes’ type of leader but as a radical who wants to dismantle, smash and destroy any structure or policy that might be identified with the Labor Party. This knock them down, knock them out style of politics, no doubt traceable to his boxing prowess as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford, does not resonate with the electorate. Positive proposals could be counted on one hand, including dental care and disability assistance, which I applaud. The rest was rape and destruction. Listening to Abbott as he gravely warned of the dire consequences that might be expected from a re-elected Labor Party, I was struck by the extent of social and financial upheaval likely to occur in the twelve months or longer after the election of a Coalition government. Sacking 12,000 public servants would just be the start. The disruption, uncertainty and loss of long and short term income caused by scrapping the NBN, the Carbon and Mining Levy’s would be considerable. The one area where Abbott and Prime Minister Gillard should look first for savings is Defence, a veritable quicksand for tax payer money. Abbott tried to make a plus of the fact that 16 former Howard Ministers are still in the ranks of the Coalition. I would have thought this a minus, a testament to the lack of renewal and inability to move forward which marks his party as reactionary rather than reformist. Marketing a coherent policy remains a problem for Abbott, very little has been put into the public domain for voters to examine and mull over. This is a distinct negative, when there is so much waiting to be done. His Press Club address was marked by a lack of costing for his agenda and a withdrawal from a promise to reduce taxes. His mainly lazy parliamentary colleagues are prepared to let him take the running in a forthcoming electoral contest they see Julia Gillard handing to them. His performance at The Lobby/Tent Embassy incident is a mark of the man. Putting to one side Julia Gillard’s lack of leadership and poor show of character on that day, Abbott, who touts his macho qualities, failed to seize the moment. Here was an opportunity to demonstrate leadership. It would not have required a surfeit of courage walk outside, confront the shouting and yes, angry demonstrators, and get them to express their grievances more calmly. I have done as much myself. To have both leaders in one spot in a situation when one or both might have demonstrated what they are made of and to have both duck for cover is a testament to the lack of leadership infecting both major parties at the moment. But for the aspirant Prime Minister it was an opportunity lost, compounded by his calls for the AFP to investigate possible breaches of security. He is attempting to misuse the AFP, to once again politicise them. What Abbott is faced with is a political problem and he should handle it as such. He looks weak attempting to hide behind the men in blue. However when Abbott announced that his new refugee policy was to turn the boats around, even after the Navy pointed out that it was against International and domestic law, and would unnecessarily put refugees and sailors at risk of physical harm, and undermine the morale of the Navy who have a duty to rescue those in peril on the sea, it showed him unfit to hold the office of Prime Minister. One of the requirements of a Prime Minister is to at least maintain a dialogue if not good relations with near neighbours. Now, even before holding office, Abbott has offended the Indonesians for no good reason other than domestic politics. He says on being elected Prime Minister he will go to Indonesia and tell them what his turn the boats around policy is all about and no doubt he will tell them what they should do on our behalf. The Indonesians are rightly angry, he should go now and explain himself. Do we really want a foot in mouth Prime Minister? What does Abbott have going for him? He exudes energy, vigour and enthusiasm, which cut across and dampen his negative message. His bounce is at odds with his reactionary conservatism. He is an enthusiast, a give it a go, boyish sort of bloke. He appears egalitarian, from factory worker, farm hand, fisherman to finance director, he can shake a hand, share a joke, grin from ear to ear and appear to be on the wave length of whoever it is he has homed in on. He can weld, drive a bulldozer, don a surgical gown and generally give it a go. Amongst other things he is the Walter Mitty of Australian politics. It would be hard to imagine Jo Hockey in Speedos or training a sheep dog but our aspirant Prime Minister is comfortable in any situation in a variety of clothes. He has the marvellous political attribute of a thick skin. No arrow, spear or silver bullet can bring him down. He is impervious to criticism; he listens to no-one and learns nothing. Surprisingly, for a Roman Catholic, who once tried his hand at orders, his compassion for the downtrodden and needy is wafer thin. However if resilience were the sole criteria for gaining Prime Ministerial office he would be a shoe in. In my mind, as Prime Minister, Abbott, would be a liability for Australia on the international stage. His talk first think later style of discourse will do harm rather than good. But bad as that may be it is his relationship with the bedecked, bejewelled and compassionless Cardinal George Pell, which should be of concern to anyone who believes Australia should remain a secular democracy. Abbott showed his form as a Minister in the Howard government. As Prime Minister he can be expected to wind- back on socially progressive issue, such as abortion, stem cell research and gay rights. Bruce Haigh is a political commentator.
|
