According to the current Prime Minister of Australia, the actions of his predecessor were about destroying the democratic system.
Previous Prime Minister of Australia Scott Morrison said on Wednesday that he secretly appointed himself as a minister in five key ministries during the corona pandemic.
At the press conference, Morrison justified his actions by saying that he felt that he alone was responsible for the nation.
– I steered the ship in the middle of the storm. As Prime Minister, only I could truly understand the responsibility that was weighing on my shoulders. No one else, Morrison told reporters, according to the Reuters news agency, recalling the beginning of the pandemic in 2020.
Morrison stepped aside as leader of the Liberal Party in May after losing the general election.
He has come under fire from the current government led by the Australian Labor Party and from his own party for an unprecedented power grab.
Prime minister Anthony Albanese According to the report, Morrison had attacked the administrative system by secretly appointing himself to the leadership of five different ministries in 2020 and 2021. Morrison had taken over the portfolios of the interior, economy, and health ministers.
– This is basically about dismantling our democratic system, Albanese said on Wednesday, according to Reuters.
Albanese has asked the vice-chancellor to assess whether Morrison’s actions were legal.
Ministers and the intelligence service were unaware of Morrison’s actions
Three ministers from the previous government have said they were not aware that Prime Minister Morrison had shared powers in their ministries.
Morrison said he did not usurp the ministers after gaining powers. He said that he interfered only once in the activities of one minister, when he rejected a project. According to Morrison, he did not tell the other ministers about his powers because he would have used his powers only in an emergency.
– The fact that the ministers were not aware of these matters is actually proof that I did not interfere in their activities, Morrison said.
Australian Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neill said in an interview with ABC TV that the head of Australia’s intelligence service did not know for a year that the country had a second interior minister.
– This causes real vulnerabilities for us as a country, O’Neill said according to Reuters.
Australia attracted international attention due to its exceptionally harsh corona measures. The country was accused of turning into a police state.