Shock and disrespect, South-Eastern Metropolitan MP Michael Galea has spoken out against a fellow minister who likened former Premier Daniel Andrews to dictator Joseph Stalin.
During the final sitting week of August, Ann-Marie Hermans spoke in opposition to the proposal of a statue to Andrews, with fellow Liberal MP Moira Deeming previously presenting a petition with nearly 35,000 signatures against said statue.
Galea said that hearing it all in person, and being said in parliament no less, was “shocking”.
“It was more than just disrespectful and disgraceful; it was generous. Our democracy is one of the most important things that we have.
“For anyone to be saying such outrageous things that undermine the dignity of the parliament, but also are deeply offensive to many, many people in the southeast community who carry the intergenerational trauma which Stalin perpetrated,” he said.
Understanding the sentiments of not wanting a statue of a former premier, he was asked by Star News if he thought that the Americanisation of political messaging had become more prominent in Australian politics, to which he agreed.
“It’s pandering to a dangerous element, it’s dangerous dog whistling,” he said.
“Even though Ms Hermans brought back some of her comments the next day, she still made equally outrageous comments to try and justify herself.
“She needs to actually give a full apology, not just to the Parliament, but to the community.”
Galea also criticised the state opposition leader, Brad Battin, for not condemning Hermans’ comments, reflecting that Australian politics, with its ministers, “takes its values seriously”, but not in that dimension.
“We are united by a common purpose more than not, but it’s divisive and hateful, rhetoric-driven politics that’s completely not based in reality, used to pander to a specific element, that is posing a very dangerous risk,” he said.
