This election is about selecting the right people not the right (no pun intended) party. For too long, voters have concentrated their efforts on supporting the broader phil-osophy of a particular political party rather that assessing the qualities of the particular person they are electing to represent them. Sometimes that person is attached to a particular political persuasion. That is not to deny them their opportunity but so often people’s principles are compromised when they are forced to follow the ‘party line’.
A few examples…
At the federal level, Midnight Oil’s mega popular Peter Garrett was wooed by the Australian Labor Party in a pre-selection for the seat of Kingsford-Smith. He was co-opted to join forces and help to win the Kevin ‘07 ‘Rudd-slide’ victory sweeping Labor back into office after 11 years of what had become an arrogant and contemptuous conservative coalition. Mr. Garrett’s win saw him elevated to the front bench with portfolios including Environment Protection, Heritage and The Arts. People certainly expected that he would continue on his environmental campaigns against uranium mining and a host of other issues. What happened, it turned out, is that Mr. Garrett ’sold his soul’ to the ALP and had to start spruking the rhetoric if favour of things he had been opposed to in his music for well over a decade. Now, Mr. Garrett is seen as an ALP puppet with little integrity at any level. The ‘party’ has pretty much helped to destroy any integrity he may have established throughout a very distinguished music career and certainly not done any favours for his perception now in the community.
Similarly, the demise of Kevin Rudd as Prime Minister was as much a part of ‘the party machine’ deciding it was time for him to go as much as it was Kevin 07’s reluctance to consult his Cabinet around decisions and his almost relentless ‘drive and expectation’ that all of his staff should work the same long hours he chose to. It was ‘the machine’ that decided he had to go – Julia Gillard was simply the next in line for the ‘throne’.
In the Northern Territory, political parties have a similar history…
The former Chief Minister, Clare Martin who sensationally led Territory Labor to victory in 2001 for the first time in 27 years since the Northern Territory (Self-Government) Act was created in 1978. She made history (or perhaps that should read ‘herstory’) by becoming the first ALP and first woman Chief Minister of the Northern Territory when Labor won by one seat. In the subsequent 2005 election, Territory Labor had all but decimated the Country-Liberals representation in the Legislative Assembly leaving only 4 members remaining (at the time referred to as the ‘phone box opposition’).
For a variety of reasons, personal, private and political, ‘the machine’ sought to be rid of Ms. Martin once she was considered to be a ‘liability’ to the party rather than an asset. Deals were struck behind ‘closed doors’ in the lead up to the Federal election announced for 24th November, 2007. The ‘deal’ was that once the heat of the Federal election was over and if Rudd won, she would agree to step aside as leader. Rudd won office on 24th November, 2007 and Ms. Martin resigned as Chief Minister 2 days later on 26th November.
The Country-Liberal Party is equally guilty of ‘assassinating’ it’s leaders. Following the decimating defeat of the CLP in the 2005 elections (including the loss of it’s former Opposition leader, Denis Burke), the four remaining CLP members of the Opposition elected Jodeen Carney, an Alice Springs based member as its leader. Ms Carney is a particularly bright, intelligent and popular politician who enjoys the support of over two thirds of her electorate and has held her seat quite comfortably since 2001. In January, 2008 her then deputy, Terry Mills (undoubtedly at the party executive’s request), offered that they ’swap jobs’. Ms. Carney refused as she believed herself to be the best person in the ‘team of 4′ to lead the party. With the result at 2:2, in the media release following her reluctant ‘resignation’, she quoted that she did not believe she would have had the support of the Executive to endorse her continuing as leader. Interestingly, she chose to put ‘the good of the party’ before her own ambitions where as the party had very clearly ’shafted’ her.
This is what political parties do to good people. The ‘machine’ takes on a life of its own and can elevate or destroy careers at its whim.
That’s why it is important to assess the person who is offering themselves to be your parliamentary representative. So before you cast your vote, ask yourself: ‘Is this person going to represent me or the views of the party?’ That’s why I want your input through this web-site or other means that work best for you.
