It started in 2010. The bickering, the snide comments, the sniping, the petty tit for tat. It is the kindergarten of Australia's federal parliament, it is a pathetic excuse for informed debate, and it is our sad political reality. With broken promises and a haphazard approach to policy development, Labor has lost the confidence of the Australian public and they will almost certainly lose the next federal election. Attention shifts to the government that we are likely to get: the Liberal National Coalition.
Many are happy to give them another shot at leadership. On current polling they attract almost half of Australia's primary vote, and they lead by over 10% on two party preferred. But despite these strong numbers, the current leader of the opposition, Tony Abbott, is the leader of choice of around only one in four people. The Coalition appears to be popular in spite of Abbott rather than because of him.
There is good leadership potential in the Coalition. And then there is Tony Abbott.
Abbott is good at whipping up anti-Labor sentiment, getting the shock jocks on side. But when we look beyond his time- wasting censure motions and his opposition to any and all policies put up before the parliament, there is no vision, no strong policy of his own.
Tony Abbott is great at opposition. However, there is a big difference between adopting a small target, campaign of constant negativity and having the policies and strength of character to effectively unify and deliver prosperity to a nation after a period of prolonged divisiveness.
We want to end the negativity, the divisiveness, the unstatesmanlike behaviour, the cynicism. Rather than accepting Prime Minister Abbott come 2013, we suggest an alternative option: a Coalition government, minus Tony Abbott. The best way of achieving our goal is to ensure that Tony Abbott does not win his seat in the 2013 Federal Election.This responsibility rests solely with the people of Warringah.
The Anyone But Abbott campaign seeks to elect a strong, independent candidate into the local area. Someone who will put the needs of the electorate above the needs of a party. Someone who will finally take a proactive, policy-centric approach to the issues that are important to the local area: public transport, health services, over-development, education, roads and security.
This will enable to the Liberal Party to choose a less polarising leader and put this sad chapter in Australian politics behind us.
This goal is achievable. The success of our campaign ultimately comes down to the voters in the seat of Warringah on polling day. We will create the momentum, pressure and support. We will put up a quality candidate who will convince 25,000 locals to change their vote. If Maxine McKew could unseat Prime Minister John Howard in 2007, we can unseat Opposition naysayer Tony Abbott in 2013.
But first, we need a hero. A Warringah local with vision, intellect, integrity and strength of character. Someone who will put Warringah first, to finally ensure it gets the attention it deserves. It is time to shake up the system, to send the message that Warringah is not just a blue ribbon seat the Coalition can neglect.
It is a critical time for the nation. Between the global economic turmoil, erosion of traditional industry strongholds and badly ageing infrastructure, Australia is at a social and economic crossroads. Warringah needs the best leader we can find. Warringah and Australia needs an alternative to Abbott.
www.anyonebutabbott.com.au