It is about time that all we Australians of different political persuasions spoke up against the way our tax monies are all too often being manipulated and used for non-essential vote collecting purposes.

Each day during the current national election campaign we have been wont to hear this or that politician standing for election often making ‘pie in the sky’ promises to fund a variety of strictly non-essential ideas not fit for a country now in debt by almost a trillion ($1,000,000,000,000) of once hard-earned cash.

It seems to me that this never before experienced trillion-dollar national debt is of little significance to many of those who put their party, their ethics and their personal ambitions above the basic and important services they were commanded to follow in our founding Constitution.

My particular appeal today is to suggest that our readers ask themselves whether these possibly costly political promises are really in line with solving their own current individual needs to overcome their crucial personal and mounting cost-of-living, housing and health service problems.

During the election campaign to date, I have been amazed that these overall needs of most voters are literally being put on the backburner. The majority of the promises made have also generally avoided the Constitution’s list of basic essential services committed for action by the top level of national government in this country.

This particular — and still vital founding document — directed all our politicians at all times to concentrate on Australia’s family security, foreign affairs; defence; social services; immigration; postal and telecommunications services; the provision of pensions and trade and commerce.

Where, in fact, did we hear of any major detailed campaign promises directed towards and based primarily on these top national government essentials?

Instead, we have heard of often vague promises being voiced on subjects very far from the essentials of life that matter today to the average man or woman within the Clarence Valley or anywhere else in our other States.

Believe it or not, but our national government has no historic direct responsibility in the Constitution for the development of, say, schools, public infrastructure, hospitals, roads, railways, public transport, agriculture, fishing, police enforcement and power generation.

When we have State election campaigns, this is the time for would-be State politicians to make genuine promises, if they have to, based on the general list above.

Interestingly, however, a good many aspiring Federal politicians are this year making promises based on what I believe are normally more State matters and not hard-core national ones.

Promises made at election time are all too often made to placate voters, irrespective of the cost and guarantee that they will become reality once the politician is voted in.

I also noticed during our Clarence Valley Council elections last year that a number of standing candidates made promises to our ratepayers on items not related to the mandated services of our third municipal tier of government.

Why the politicians of today have to make promises to achieve votes I can never understand. Why not concentrate on explaining in minute detail their hard and fast policy plans and just leave the public to make up their own minds as to the merits of each case?

This error is also being perpetrated by certain sections of the current Media which desperately attempts to make up our minds for us through comment without merely sticking to and presenting the bare facts.

When next we have a public election, just look at the short sentence promises published by most politicians hoping to buy your vote. They generally promise to “solve” the problems of the day but seldom explain in detail how they intend to accomplish their aim — and at what cost.

My experience of politics tells me that most people are not gullible and can make a good decision on their own behalf when presented with all the meaningful facts and data instead of vague promises of certain matters often without any idea as to the eventual cost.

I was quite amused when, at the beginning of the recent national election campaign, I noticed election leaflets showing multiple photographic presentations of certain politicians at various social and other ceremonies without instead indulging us with important facts on their party’s future intentions on our behalf.

As an old saying goes, beware of those who speak too much and those bearing gifts with a certain self-advanced intention in mind.

This article appeared in Clarence Valley Independent, 16 April 2025.