When Tony Abbott lost the leadership of the LNP back in September I had mixed feelings. I don’t believe I am in any way unique in not gaining any joy out of witnessing someone's downfall. On the other hand, it was obvious to anyone other than the rusted on, that there was something badly amiss within the party room and within the electorate when it came to support of Tony Abbott. So, whilst I was saddened by Mr Abbott’s downfall, I was also relieved that something had happened and I was looking forward to the LNP gaining the upper hand once more.
I had no idea how Tony Abbott would respond, what he would do and how he would conduct himself after the shock of being dumped had worn off. I was delighted when he came out and stated that he would not snipe or white-ant and that he would continue to work in the best interests of the party. He even encouraged people to get behind the Turnbull Government. So how disappointing that he has very quickly plummeted to the level of chief sniper attacking in particular Scott Morrison and Julie Bishop. Two people who were loyal to him despite a working relationship that become more and more problematic after the February aborted spill.
I’ve recently become a fan of the ABC program Kitchen Cabinet. My ABC viewing is restricted to dramas, but a friend suggested I watch the Ricky Muir appearance on Kitchen Cabinet so I did. It was enlightening. Hence, I’ve been working my way through past episodes on iView ever since. Last week, I watched the Bob Hawke episode. He made a comment that stuck in my mind because it reminded me of Tony Abbott. It was, “You have to have the capacity to hate to be a good opposition leader. You have to have the ability to bash the government.” I think that was a pretty good description of Tony Abbott and few would deny I suspect that he was an extremely good opposition leader. Bob Hawke went on to say that, that doesn’t always make you a good government leader.
Tony Abbott was a very effective opposition leader but he was not a good Prime Minister, so perhaps Bob Hawke as right. Great opposition leaders do not make good leaders of government. Tony Abbott was warned, about his leadership. He did not heed the warning. He chose not to do what was necessary to fix some of the challenges he faced. He alone did that. He was removed.
Now we find that Tony Abbott is the one who is sniping despite declaring he wouldn’t. He now claims he doesn’t remember discussions with people. People within his own ministry who were trying to help and indeed warn him. Given the circumstances, it’s almost beyond comprehension that Tony Abbott has no recollection. No one else is claiming they don’t recall, only him. Does Mr Abbott’s apparent loss of memory explain his reliance on Peta Credlin and his insistence that she attend all meetings and functions? Does he suffer from a retention problem? It might explain some of the behaviour that others struggled with.
That aside, it is time to move on. I don’t want t see a repeat of the first nine months of 2015. The country needs the government to get on and do its job. If there are people in Canberra including Mr Abbott who can’t and who are intent on sniping and destabilising then they need to get out and to let those who are focused on fixing up the mess do it. Labor is the opposition, let's not forget that.
