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Community campaign network GetUp! continues to prepare for the next federal election (due before May 2022) by raising funds to pay for advertising in marginal seats.
This time the refusal of the Morrison Government to refer Christian Porter’s non-disclosure of the donors behind the $1 million blind trust that covered his legal expenses in the defamation action he took against the ABC has raised GetUp!’s heckles.
“The Morrison Government did something unprecedented in Parliament history,” according to GetUp!
It was referring to the Morrison Government’s decision to block a bid to have the Privileges Committee examine former Attorney General, Christian Porter’s use of a blind trust to fund his defamation legal fees.
GetUp! cited several sources to verify that a referral to the Privileges Committee had not been blocked since Federation 120 years ago.
“The Morrison Government are going to extraordinary lengths to avoid accountability… which is exactly why they’ve been waging a propaganda war against a strong federal anti-corruption watchdog in recent weeks.
“With three bills pushing for robust integrity commissions due in Parliament this November, it’s no wonder they’re doubling down,” GetUp! said.
Christian Porter did resign from the Morrison cabinet following the pressure he received over declaring $1 million from anonymous donors to sue the ABC.
At the time of Porter’s resignation from the cabinet GetUp! described his political career as “crumbling”
“The systemic failures and holes in our system that led to this point are as glaring as ever,” the organization said.
“Secret funds to muzzle the ABC’s reporting have been allowed to fester because of our broken political system.
“A system that’s given us a culture of sports rorts, au pairs, publicly-funded junkets, raids on political opponents, and forged documents.” “It’s time for a Federal ICAC to stop these abuses of power and we need to press hard on this moment to ensure Porter’s resignation isn’t just a bandaid distraction, but the beginning of a real change in politics.
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
Write to your local MP about the need for a strong federal corruption commission that includes public hearings and all the teeth it needs.
Donate to GetUp! or another organization that is working to improve the general state of politics in Australia and renew our democracy.
