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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2020-02-18 Daily Xml
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Grievance Debate

Member for Waite

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens) (15:08): In an open act of defiance and treachery towards the Premier, members of the Liberal Party last night gathered and applauded Sam Duluk. They applauded the member for Waite. They applauded him because he is now a victim, according to some members of the Liberal Party, not the women he allegedly sexually harassed, not the women he allegedly assaulted and not the people he made homophobic remarks to or racist remarks to. Poor old member for Waite. He is the one who has carried the big cross here. He is the one who has paid the ultimate price.

Of course, he had his friends there alongside him. He had the member for Narungga there alongside him. He had Senator Alex Antic alongside him. He had his old sub-branch alongside him. There was one member there who decided to raise the obvious: 'If this motion is carried, if this branch endorses what you are asking us to endorse, it will be open revolt against the Premier.' So what did they do? They voted for the motion.

They cannot claim ignorance: 'We didn't know it would be embarrassing for the Premier.' There was a former cabinet minister at that meeting who told that meeting, 'This would be a mistake. This will get out.' Dutifully, someone in the meeting leaked it and kindly and thankfully taped it.

Mr Brown: Patriot!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Patriot—someone who is not going to put up with what the member for Waite is doing. Importantly, the Premier now just exonerated that person, whoever that was, because it was in the public interest because Liberal Party meetings are open. They are an open forum for anyone to come along. Anyone can go. I can go to the next one. I will go along and just listen to talk about how it is okay to sexually harass women. It is only a tap on the bum. What is the big deal?

The real questions here that the member for Narungga would not answer are: was he with the member for Waite on Friday the 13th? Was he drinking with the member for Waite on Friday the 13th? Was he there with him when he made homophobic remarks? Was he there when he made racist remarks? Was he there when he sexually harassed women? Was he there when he allegedly assaulted someone? And what did he do about it when he saw all this?

What are two Liberal MPs doing being intoxicated in Parliament House during the day? What about that question? Since when is it okay on the taxpayers' dollars—

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: Point of order: under standing order 127, I suspect that the member for West Torrens has gone over the mark.

The SPEAKER: He is starting to 'make personal reflections on any other Member'. I caution the member for West Torrens.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Thank you, sir—and I will take the caution seriously. I feel for the staff, who are powerless in this building. There is legislation empowering the Equal Opportunity Commissioner to conduct investigations. The government hides behind privilege, not allowing independent investigations in the parliament, not even having the courage to use their numbers in the parliament to establish an inquiry, but instead, using the office of the Speaker to establish an inquiry.

This parliament is not a dictatorship. This parliament deserves to be the master of its own destiny, not having one person tell us how things will be investigated but the parliament as a whole. We are sovereign. We will decide how our members are to be treated. We will decide how laws are made and we will make sure that no member in this house is above those laws. What the Liberal Party is attempting to do is to make one person, because they need his vote, above those laws.

In any other workplace in Australia, the member for Waite would be out on his backside—out on his backside. Instead, we have a Premier saying, 'I have thrown him out of the party room. I have thrown him out of the Liberal Party.' Then, not within 24 hours of having made that proclamation, he is the guest speaker at a Liberal Party function, the guest speaker with applause from a senior member of this parliament and a senior member of the commonwealth parliament. He is chuffed.

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Thank you for calling me a senior member. In the remarks I heard from the members of the Liberal Party of the Waite sub-branch, not once did I hear any remorse for what happened to the Hon. Connie Bonaros. Not once did I hear any remorse for what happened to those staff. Not once did I hear any remorse for the racist remarks, for the homophobia. Not once did I hear any sort of contrition. It was all about what was happening to the poor old member for Waite.

I would have to say that if the Liberal Party are so bereft of resources that they cannot find any other venue to hold their SEC meeting at, what does that say about the Liberal Party in the suburbs of South Australia? I just wonder what members of the Liberal Party are thinking about the way the Premier has handled this. I have to say that he had a more deft touch with land tax, didn't he? The idea that the Premier is prepared to accept racism, homophobia, sexual harassment and assault, but there is some other secret allegation that tips him—

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: Point of order: that is quite a reflection on another member of the house and is disorderly.

The SPEAKER: I uphold the point of order.

Time expired.

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