Great Eastern Highway
The Independent Member for Murchison-Eyre, John Bowler, has a gift for saying what people are thinking. That’s what makes him a successful politician.
In the Kalgoorlie Miner on Monday he described the State Government’s decision to keep the highway closed between Kalgoorlie and Perth as “backside covering”.
He was referring to officials in the Department of Environment and Conservation who last week allowed motorists to drive to their deaths while flames were known to be lapping the highway, but subsequently consider it unsafe to have a blaze nearly two hours away from the roadside.
Myself and others called it “arse covering” while cursing our way towards Perth on the 13-hour detour route.
The impact on businesses in Kalgoorlie has been well documented. The Kalgoorlie Miner has suffered as well, which is disappointing given the outstanding circulation growth we achieved in December.
Hopefully Mr Bowler’s frankness will stir someone in Perth towards positive action.
A surprising aspect of the continued closure is that it seems to be an admission of negligence in relation to the events of Sunday, December 31. I repeat my personal call for a Royal Commission.
I'm a 41-year-old father of four working as a newspaper editor at Mount Gambier in South Australia.
