The decrepitude of Victorian politics as the November election approaches is eclipsed only by the obscene self-indulgence of its practitioners.

The state’s political class is comprehensively talentless, comprised of the factionalised remnants of Andrews’ government largely operates absent of democratic or budgetary limitations.

Victoria’s circus-like state opposition is ripping itself apart at the very moment non-Labor voters are in search of someone (anyone) to cauterise the damage inflicted by Labor’s recklessness.

The bovver boys and girls that occupy the government benches sit in Parliament because most are unemployable elsewhere. In this, the opposition is not immune.

Government, in the once massively wealthy state of Victoria, long ago ceased concerning itself with the interests of those who pay for it. Taxpayers and their ‘hard-earned’ dollars are merely a means to a (political) end for Labor.

The benches of both houses of Victoria’s Parliament (yes, there are still two) are littered with time-serving, self-indulgent, visionless individuals comfortable treating voters with contempt. Promises are made and routinely broken, statements are made which are manifestly untrue, and distractions are created to smother a multitude of disasters across government. Hundreds of state-funded operatives are employed by Andrews to hone and target messages that they’ll deliver in the government’s interests.

It’s now inescapable that a core reason Victoria is wallowing in a swamp of debt and mismanagement is the total absence of talent, honesty, and morality across and within the political level of government.

Trust and ability are also absent from the game.

In the eight years Andrews has presided over Cabinet he has politicised the once fine Victorian public service and created fear and loathing amongst its upper echelons. Failure to meet the Premier’s wishes can be fatal to those occupying or aspiring to high office. Wanting more of the same, Andrews has declared he’ll remain a full four years as Premier should he win on November 26.

Many in the Andrews’ orbit (including multiple cabinet ministers) have witnessed close-up the fury and spiteful viciousness of this individual. Remember the merciless undermining of former Health Minister Jenny Mikakos who was then summarily sacked having done the Premier’s bidding at the start of Covid…?

On June 24 of this year, four-time-servers in the Andrews’ circle all quit on the same day in a tightly stage-managed announcement in which wholly insincere and obsequious praise was heaped on each in separate statements by ‘the’ leader. The only thing worse than not being thanked by Daniel Andrews, is being thanked by him. Insincerity is now the hallmark of this discredited Premier.

Each of James Merlino, Martin Foley, Lisa Neville, and Martin Pakula appear to be enjoying life on the backbench until polling day when they take their leave (plus their not-inconsiderable severance payouts). They join the long list of ministers who have left the ministry since the Andrews’ re-election in 2018, including Jill Hennessy, Gavin Jennings, Adem Somyurek, Marlene Kairouz, Luke Donnellan, and Robin Scott. This period of upheaval comes amid revelations and investigations into widespread ALP branch stacking and other nefarious activities conducted while ministers.

Andrews has personally facilitated the ballooning of public service numbers to the point where one in eight people working in the state are paid for by one arm of government or another. Tens of thousands of public servants (more than 300,000 in fact) take their directions (and their pay) from leftist ideologues of one Labor faction or another. Only NSW has a larger public service than Victoria.

Public sector loyalty to Labor – but more importantly ‘the leader’ is everything. The vast majority of these people continue to work from home, which is one of the key reasons so many small to medium-sized businesses in Melbourne’s CBD have shut their doors. Many business people who invested their funds to employ others have gone out of business thanks to Andrews’ policies – while government employees (who risked nothing) remain handsomely paid while ‘working’ from home.

Even before the starter’s gun is fired, the faux campaign for the November election is underway. The Premier is out there speaking garbage about health, transport, and education being better in the future.

For the needs of a massively obliging Spring Street political media entourage, it’s hard hats and high-viz for Daniel every other day – while billions in borrowed money flicks over screens in global markets as if there’s no tomorrow.

For far too many Victorians who lost their lives, their businesses and/or their mental wellbeing during Daniel Andrews comprehensively botched handling of Covid – there is actually no tomorrow. Andrews and his remaining acolytes can promise what they like. Voters don’t buy it and with luck Andrews himself will lose his seat of Mulgrave – removing from office the most dangerous and repugnant Premier the state has ever produced.

In a sea of sad realities the saddest is that Victorian politics has become a very ordinary ‘game’ played by very ordinary people. Taxpayers and their children are the losers. They deserve better.