VOTERS TOO CAUGHT UP IN HOLLOW CAMPAIGN PROMISES
It is possible that the federal Labor Party, with preferences from the Greens, could form government at the May election.
Consider that almost half of Australia's population is dependent on some form of government welfare.
Statistics reveal that in Australia we have more than half the population working for a living, while the other half on social welfare are voting for a living. Bill Shorten understands this situation well and will outbid any other political party as far as election promises are concerned.
Unfortunately, the majority of voters have a very short memory, and so they will usually vote for the party that promises them the most. In most cases, these millions of dollars promised are like pie crusts - made to be broken.
I was amazed at the comments of former Prime Minister Tony Abbott advising electors to vote for the Labor Party, rather than for independents.
When Pauline Hanson was elected in the federal electorate of Oxley in 1996, the late former PM Malcolm Fraser made the astonishing comment that the Liberal and Labor parties should unite, because he was concerned that more than a million electors had voted for Pauline in 1996.
This clearly shows how desperate politicians can become when the pressure is on.
In an endeavour to win votes, Mr Shorten promises to increase the minimum wage, which will increase unemployment, because small businesses struggling to remain viable will not be able to employ these workers.
If electors do not vote responsibly, then we will get the government we deserve.
Hedley Scholz,
Eudunda.
CHANGES IN LEADERSHIP UNDERMINE DEMOCRACY
When the federal government lost its Lower House majority towards the end of last year after an independent won Malcolm Turnbull's old seat, what the government did was to effectively shut down the Australian Parliament as indicated by the low number of sitting days it planned for 2019.
Democracy is the basis of our Australian way of life and Prime Minister Scott Morrison treated that ideal with contempt.
He clearly indicated that when his government lost control of the House of Representatives, rather than do what our form of government requires - the immediate calling of an election - he would cling to power.
It is this fact alone why the Morrison government should not be re-elected. Well, that is not quite the correct way of expressing that sentiment as Mr Morrison was not elected by the people of Australia to the position of PM in the first place.
This leads on to the second important issue of political instability at the federal level. The revolving door of PMs from both major political parties reflects poorly on our democracy and indeed undermines it.
The position of PM is an important determinant as to whether that party receives somebody's vote, so the changing of PM in between elections undermines our democracy.
It goes without saying that the position of PM carries a lot of power. For example, it is the PM who makes the decision as to whether troops are sent overseas to fight in a war.
As a consequence, a new rule needs to be implemented that if a party wishes to change the PM, then an election needs to be called.
This simple measure means it is the Australian people who determine our PM, not a political party machine. We are saved from the possibility of a dictatorial PM gaining the reins of power by stealth.
So if you are interested in preserving our system of democracy, then a clear message has to be sent to the Morrison government that circumventing our democracy is not an option.
