POWER CORRUPTION AND LIES

What attributes does a politician need to have? What skill set? Self sacrifice, public service, honour, and integrity, honesty a good grasp of constitutional law and an understanding of the issues facing their constituency as well as the country as a whole. A desire to empower and inspire and a passion for leadership. Those qualities, if upheld, should not make that politician immune from scrutiny and scrutiny is fine when one has no need to hide.

Unfortunately what we have at the moment, a time of global and domestic crisis, are politicians at the helm whose default position is to go against all semblance of the qualities needed to lead and more to the point, seem immune from any semblance of accountability.

Lies, deception and a flagrant disregard for the rules they themselves impose would seem dishonest at best and downright corrupt at worst. It’s the downright temerity that grates; the lack of shame for such overtly scandalous behaviour. But who needs shame when you have hubris?

Ah hubris, that great leveller of god and man. When, in May of last year, we saw a dishevelled Dominic Cummings amble into his press conference, late and with his shirt hanging out, to explain his lockdown breaking trip what we saw was hubris, arrogance and hubris. 

Now in February 2021 Hancock steps up into the hubristic spotlight. The difference this time around is that Hancock’s misdemeanours are buried beneath tabloid outrage at Prince Harry and his African American wife and he perception that they have turned their backs on the Royal family. I find nothing strange in their choice, particularly as neither of them are related to the queen or Philip.

When the media overlook the blatant inappropriate behaviour of those entrusted with the destiny of our country it gives permission for that behaviour. A hubristic leadership normalises lying, cheating and brown envelopes, jobs for the boys and a nudge-nudge wink-wink culture, but when our bastions of truth are in cahoots with that behaviour there is little hope of seeing our appointed leaders through anything other than the prism of distrust. It seems that, for those in parliament, those wax wings are flame proof.