CANDIDATE Q & A – Steve Whitaker, Palmer United candidate for Robertson

What motivated you to run?

Firstly like all the Palmer United candidates I am just an everyday average Australian person. I’m 51 years old I’ve been around the Central Coast since 1984. For the last 10 years I’ve been a carer, for two people, firstly my wife and also for my aged mother who is 84. Things just weren’t right, things just weren’t happening in all facets of my life so I decided to stand up and try and make a difference.
What are some of the issues you are most passionate about?
Apart from the national issues, I have a couple of local issues as well.
But firstly over the years I’ve had a lot to do with manufacturing, I’ve had a lot to do with the broadcast industry, I’ve had a lot to do with mining, electronics engineering and I’m very despondent at seeing the manufacturing sector just sucked out of the country. I’ve watched it go from being productive to semi productive to almost being there to nothing, which is heartbreaking. Later in my years I’ve seen people doing it really tough and I know in my heart there is a better way can do this, that’s generally.
Locally, as I said since having been on the Central Coast since 1984, I’ve seen a lot of changes. A place that’s got so much to offer, a place of natural resource and a place of tourism, and a place of happiness. I think locally one of the biggest issues that I’m going to push…is the acquisition, refurbishment and the re-opening of Old Sydney Town. Hopefully, trying to bring some kind of employment, and at least some type of tourism. I’m hoping that people take upon our policies of putting local money into local infrastructure and local investment. Apart from that just generally not very happy with the way things have been going for the past 6-10 years.

You’re running with the Palmer United Party can you tell me a little bit about the party itself and why you wanted to be affiliated with it?

When I saw that there was an opportunity to be involved with an alternative, Clive Palmer is a very, very intelligent, compassionate man, he is a very down to earth Australian person. I think I was drawn to the heartfelt anguish that he was going through, in fact I related very closely to a comment he made quite awhile ago about sitting on the coach with his wife and he was watching question time. And I actually watched the same session of question time, and he apparently said to his wife, ‘what the hell is going on?’ And I couldn’t make heads or tails of what was going on and I thought these people are meant to be running the country so, Clive basically set up an alternative he had had a gutful, just like me. Everyone’s had a gutful, in fact at the time I remember likening question time to the Monty Python movie ‘Life of Brian, with PSJ People’s Front of Judea – where everything gets spoken about but nothing actually happens. Lots of people talking but nobody listening, and the people that are listening are not doing anything so I was drawn to the party, I actually joined the party and I made a few phone calls…I was offered the seat of Robertson and I thought well …I’d love to take it on because by and large we stand united here on the Central Coast and everybody’s had an absolute gutful of this.

What do you think your biggest challenge is in this election?

Well, our challenges are getting through to people, it doesn’t have to be a duopoly. People are pretty, I guess, narrow minded when it comes to a duopoly. We have to vote for Kevin Rudd or we have to vote for Tony Abbott. We have to vote for Liberal or we have to vote for Labor. It doesn’t have to be that way and I think it is not only my local challenge, but it is a challenge right throughout the country, where we have to get it into people’s minds that it actually does count. I spoke to a gentleman that said ‘look I’ll just do the donkey vote, I’ll walk in and cross the next box’ and I said ‘mate you can make a difference, you don’t have to take on the last two elections as being pointless.’ And I think the biggest challenge is getting across to the people what we have to offer and we have a hell of a lot to offer. It is not only myself it is the Independents, it is the Greens, it’s outside the duopoly of the two parties that call themselves major parties. For the first time in history it is a three major party race. Even though we haven’t run before, the Palmer United Party is actually standing more candidates in more seats than both Liberal and Labor parties combined. And I noticed today (20/8) Tony Abbott is about to announce dis-endorsing another two candidates, so we are strength in front. I think people have just had a gutful, getting the message across is probably the biggest challenge.

How will you be preferencing?

In terms of preferences, obviously not with the two big parties. I’ve had talks with a couple of local Independents and on local issues I stand very close to a young gentleman by the name of Jake Cassar, he has contested the last two elections on the Central Coast for local environmental issues. I firmly stand up for and believe in everything he is trying to do. I have a lot of faith in the gentleman. I’ve stood up first and said mate you’ve got my backing, let’s push to get old Sydney Town open again, get local employment, tourism, let’s get that money back into our local area.

Is this the first time you have run?

It is the first time I have run, I am a newby. I said at a meet the candidates debate a couple of weeks ago, I stood up and said ‘Hi guys I’m the new guy’ and everyone wanted to know about me and you know what that tells me something. People were coming to me asking what can you do for us because you sure as hell are going to have to do something. And it made me realise things were about to change, I didn’t have the power to change things in my hands it was a bit scary but if everyone supported the same team it would be boring. And I had to stand up and try to make a difference and at least if I don’t, if I fail, I’ll go to sleep knowing I’ve tried.