Earlier this year, Victorians were released from the many tentacles of Daniel Andrews. Under his regime, Victoria became the most lockdown state in the world; the premier crystallised his godlike powers after bankrupting the Victorian economy; Andrews sailed off into the sunset; so how should we see his legacy?
Comparisons between Dan and Chairman Mao are fitting, and it’s easy to see why. Andrews demanded blind obedience. Victoria had six lockdowns and spent 262 days in lockdown under Dan’s rule.
The checks and balances of political power were laid to waste. On the 15th December 2021,the Andrews government passed the Public Health and Wellbeing Amendment into permanent law. Dan set into motion a dangerous precedent for the future.
Victoria became the Draconian kingdom of totalitarian utopia. Victorian Premiers now may enforce lockdowns for the time and duration they see fit.
Under this amendment, a Victorian premier can declare a pandemic. Any person who violates these rules can face up to $90,000 in fines and two years in jail.
His rhetoric only reinforced the boldness of his political maneuvers. He argued that there were “no alternatives to lockdowns.” At other times, he argued that “leadership is about doing what’s not popular.” On the climate front, Andrew’s took it upon himself to further infringe on the private freedoms of Victorian citizens by outlawing gas cooking in new homes. Ironically, in true hypocritical fashion, he was photographed cooking on a gas stove.
While many, including Andrews himself, dismissed any insatiable lust for power and continually insisted on the public good, we often forget the the temptations of centralised power. Power corrupts corruptible men, even the great ones. Dan is one of Caesar’s begotten sons, and in the spirit of Julius Caesar, he has made the office of Victorian premier a throne of ‘divine-like power.’
The most dangerous dictators deny their impulse to be divine. Just after Caesar marched towards Rome, he reformed the Senate and implemented a series of sweeping reforms, and then, even as the new emperor of Rome, all these things weren’t enough. Caesar had to satisfy one more impulse. To make himself divine, to satisfy the final reach of power a man can have. After Caesar pronounced himself dictator in perpetuum, it was clear Caesar would never give up his power. He was elected dictator for 10 years, and two months later he was assassinated.
Unlike Caesar, who went out on his sword as dictator until his last breath, Andrews did not possess the gumption to follow in the footsteps of his predecessor. When the Andrews government ended, it was not so much a political assassination as it was a political suicide.
After miraculously winning the Victorian election in a strong victory against his Liberal opposition, the wheels fell off for the Andrews government. Soon after, Andrews cancelled the 2026 Commonwealth Games after he bankrupted the Victorian economy. His government also faced increasing allegations of corruption and coverups. Is Andrews guilty of any error? Amidst the mounting pressure on the Andrews government, he made a statement fitting of a tyrant: “I am not going to apologise.” But finally, after mounting pressure and Dan’s sociopathic inability to face the music, he resigned from his role as State Premier and from his seat in parliament, and then sailed off into the sunset.
Despite leaving, however, Dan has made the role of Victorian premier in his image, he has created Premier in Perpetuo
Dan wrote into law a set of dictatorial powers that would even warm the heart of Caesar himself. It was Machiavelli who once said, “Judge a leader by who he surrounds himself with.” Like recognises like. Undemocratic Dan and undemocratic China both have the same thing in common: the lust for authoritarian rule. It’s almost fitting that Dan has a mysterious history of a long-standing love affair with China. Before resigning, he had just completed his seventh trip, which was controversially shrouded in mystery. The controversy arose not because of any unfair or unjust criticism, but because of the circumstances in which it occurred. His government was very vague about the details of the trip and described it as a trip concerning the China-Australia International Student Partnership.The media was banned from attending, and they did not explain who he would be meeting. To corroborate this story, The Age contacted “four sources” within key educational institutions in Victoria, none of them were contacted about this trip. Wouldn’t they play a key part in such plans?
Politicians only need to hide something when they have something to hide. China is not a trusted ally of Australia, but Dan seems to be the most trusted ally of China. Why would a state premier need to visit so often, and why does it appear that he is misleading the public as to the reasons for his visit? What was Dan hiding? Is he not accountable for an $80,000 trip paid for by Victorian taxpayers? The CCP wants total global control, whether by subversive or direct means, whether through bribery, blackmail, or more devious means. Making a trip to China to confront the CCP about the origins of COVID, China’s vast bribery network in countries like Samoa and Micronesia, or to ask about why ASIO has just deported a Chinese spy from Australian shores would all be legitimate reasons for making a trip. But Dan didn’t do any of these things, and Dan is a man to whom rules do not apply. His legacy, while embroiled in controversy and dictatorial power-hungry impulses, will never be fully understood unless there is transparency. There are those within the Victorian Government who know about the details of Andrews dealings with China. They need to step forward and, for once, place the public interest before his own.
