It ain't just the Feds Phil. Wot about the States who seem keen to divide and get re-elected.
_________

The behaviour of most states (except NSW) saved many lives and much chronic illness. Even if there had been no states, a rational national government would have needed to adopt varying tactics to managing Covid depending upon the situation in different locations. We’re at a precarious point right now (probably to be corrected somewhat today by those premiers who are sane). Imagine the condition of the country if Morrison and Berejiklian had totally had their way - KJ

Perhaps its all about how one looks at the problem of political leadership?

The real issue is that not enough ordinary people, yep that's you 'n me, don't take enough time and effort to understand the issues and to hold those who are responsible, accountable for their actions or inaction.

If we live in a true democracy, and that's fairly rare these days, there is an opportunity to take an interest in what is actually happening and to vote those who are not performing out and vote in, those who might actually do something before the power goes to their head.

Someone I know suggests no government should be in power for more than one term and no politician should be able to be re-elected.

Of course, that scenario might only work where there is an effective and accountable public service who are kept free of corruption by an anti-corruption body that has been fully and independently resourced.

Ah ha! Have I just identified the root cause of the problem?

The politicisation of the public service has been an ongoing project for neo-liberal politicians all over the world.

This is presented to the public as a means of ensuring that the public sector is 'responsive' to the government of the day.

What it actually means is that the public sector remains servile and compliant to whatever the government wishes, irrespective of its merits or even legality.

I mention this because it is the background context whereby the corruption and incompetence mentioned in this article, as well as in the comments, is able to flourish seemingly unhindered by any effective efforts to stop it.

In Australia, the current Federal government has sequestered some $16 billion in the current budget for unnamed purposes.

That is, they have created what was once correctly called a 'slush fund' to pay for various electoral promises that they feel they may need to make in an effort to be re-elected.

That this is corruption seems not to have crossed their minds or, if it has, they airily say that it is just politics as usual.

The latter statement is false: it is not politics as usual but a clear breach of the long established custom and practice that public funds ought to be allocated in an open, fair and transparent manner to achieve things that are incontrovertibly 'in the public interest'.

Once such self serving actions are seen by others they effectively licence corrupt behaviour more generally. After all, if the great and the good can misappropriate public monies why not the little people too.

Thus the cancer of corruption metastasises throughout the whole body politic and, ultimately, this produces a failed or failing state.

Lebanon, Iraq and Myanmar are examples of this problem and PNG is already far down the same path.

Once corruption is endemic it is very hard to suppress unless there is the political will to do so. It is not rocket science to do this, only requiring the application of diligence, honesty, practical common sense and, as the author says, to the simple things right.

Dear Phil, Our federal government's response to climate change and the Covid-1984 pandemic resembles a fistful of pakapoo tickets in a Canal Street opium den.

The image of an 'unflushable turd' creeping through 'revolving doors' on a 'gravy train' is a fascinating thing to imagine Bernard.

Reminds me of our 'excretable' prime minister.

Maholopa, Bareji High School and others along that partly greasy gravel road and beyond Pongani River fording-without-bridge, are places I visited simply to see the physical conditions for the delivery of education services in Oro Province, and to begin to assess and to be appreciative of the assets. (Visited flooded Pongani Primary 2008, and Bareji High 2018, Sakarina not yet. All as a tourist, who was at Eroro 1970/71.)

For instance, the road to Bareji (and Managalas) is mostly ok but with some near impassable portions (Banderi) that need have priority in upgrade. And Pongani River needs be adorned with a new bridge better than that lost a decade ago.

Then "it may come to pass", that senior education staff will give closer attendance. There is report of school(s) not visited by inspectorial staff and it might be surmised that wading through metre deep fast flowing rivers is a dampener on enthusiasm at assessing.

Hats off to Simon Eroro and all assiduously effective reporters. (My two lads were born at the area of Eroro, Katereda, which I say only to emphasize a yearning for integrity of teaching staff. The health facility at Katereda, when I visited in 2005, and since, shows that somebody made off with the solar panel from that roof, and which remains a matter outstanding. By this it may be surmised that not just one or two mouths are not telling, and that many mouths are consuming food, for which the cost is the theft of products or cash or both by, well, Oro people.)

Meanwhile, it needs be asked, how well are Oro learners achieving in more recent years. So crucial is it, that Oro folk need pull away from the biznez of theft and other forms of corruption and stop pretending that no one will really notice.

That fraudster so "dumb to leave the same student identification" is the example of a society staying not only dumb but increasingly more lazily ignorant.