An open letter to prime minister Scott Morrision from Maggie Adkins of West Haven:
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Your apology for taking your family on vacation was unnecessary.
It was fine for your family to go. It was, however, not fine for you to go.
If you can see the bigger picture at all, as a true leader must, you would know how devastating it was that you left the country you are supposed to lead and care for in the middle of this very major crisis.
If ever our country needs a leader to wield his power, this is the time. No, you don't carry a hose or sit in a control room, as you said, but that is not your job.
The first glimpse we saw of you on TV upon your return, after firefighters have died and hundreds of thousands of hectares have burned in your absence, was you in the control room being briefed on the status of the fires. Why? That is not what your country needs from you. We need you in strategy meetings asking what your government can do to help. And we need that NOW.
Some of what is needed is not a quick fix like an extra helmet or boots or mask. Some of it requires foresight and planning, which you have not done even when authorities have attempted to advise you month after month of the increased dangers to this precious country.
You stated a few weeks ago that the volunteer fire fighters wanted to be out there. As Meg McGowan said so well in her message to you that aired on The Project two weeks ago, they don't want to be there. They have to be there or nobody would be there and much more of Australia would be burned.
Here are some of the more obvious issues that you need to address:
What can the government do to help the volunteer firefighters, many of whom are working 15 hour days, exhausted, in some of the most hazardous conditions that exist on this planet? Many are losing income as they are not able to do their paid jobs and volunteer to fight fires.
What do the firefighters need to do their job? Better equipment, more equipment? Helmets, boots, masks, oxygen equipment? What can this government do to help them right NOW?
What help will the firefighters have after the fires when PTS raises its ugly head. Mr. Morrison, you are not the one hearing koalas scream as they burn to death in the trees. What can your government do to help people recover from the horrors they are experiencing on the front line?
What water reserves do we have and are towns running out of water? How do we best handle the increased use of water in fighting fires?
I know it is complicated. I know it is difficult. But you need to do your job whether it is going outside party lines or not. We need a leader who does the best for this precious country as a whole.
- Maggie Adkins
It has been reported that Adani has been promised 12.5 billion litres of water a year from your government, to be pumped from the Suttor River in Queensland. Can that atrocity be possible when we have towns running out of water? Please say no. There are valid alternatives to this. The people and land you have vowed to protect must come before your outdated and toxic coal mine.
Many fire authorities have stated that they have done their best over many months to warn you about the increased fire dangers, but could not get in front of you or your advisors. You must start listening, even when you don't want to hear what is being said.
I do not care if you believe in climate change And before anyone tells me this again, I do know that we have always had fires and drought and flood, but NOT like we have now. We are in a new time and place and need to do things differently from the past.
And before I hear one more person in your party blame the Greens, please remember that the Greens are not in power. Your party is in power and if you make an agreement with any other party, that is on you, no one else.
I know it is complicated. I know it is difficult. But you need to do your job whether it is going outside party lines or not. We need a leader who does the best for this precious country as a whole. That means the people, homes, beloved pets, wildlife, and the only environment that we have.
Maggie Adkins
West Haven