McGinty Health Revolution

Spreading the Infection

After seven years, soaring rates of chlamydia, syphilis and gonorrhoea underline the disastrous failure of Jim McGinty's in the area of Aboriginal Health.

The Socialist Left ideology proselytised by Jim McGinty and fellow travellers has driven Aboriginal policy since the early 1970’s and many are now coming to realise that those well intentioned policies have been catastrophic for Aboriginal people.

Socialist Left Ministers have mostly controlled the social welfare ministries such as health, welfare and education in Labor Governments.

We have seen chronic failure but the political spin would suggest all is well.

In Jim McGinty's maiden speech to State Parliament on 31 May 1990 he declared:

"..... a number of groups ..... deserve the prime attention of this Parliament. I refer first to Aboriginals. .......

Numerous statistics exist and each of them indicates that this Government has not achieved in any sense equality for Aboriginal people. All the indicators point to an alienated, dispossessed and oppressed people. I will endeavour, in my term in this Parliament, to provide positive measures to support self determination by Aboriginal people, economic and social self reliance and generally to enhance the welfare of the Aboriginal people of this country."

Jim McGinty’s failure in Aboriginal affairs is reflected after seven years as the de facto head of the Labor Government in Western Australia and control of the health and justice system. The results have been declining health, increased incarceration, poor education standards among Aboriginal adults and an explosion in truancy by Aboriginal students.

It was not surprising to read Commonwealth disease surveillance figures that McGinty would never release in an understandable form. They show that in Western Australia there has been a massive 20% increase in chlamydia, and also soaring rates of syphilis and gonorrhoea. While the figure are design to confuse the notification rates by local government area show the problem has exploded in areas of high Aboriginal population.

Can we soon expect a “good news” media release from Health Minister Jim McGinty telling us how much progress is being made with the announcement of new initiatives – if the figures look like getting into to public area in an intelligible form!

Jim McGinty seems to thinks more new hospitals and more legislation in health and justice will fix the problem.

McGintiy's Ministerial Department and agencies are racked with an epidemic of fear and managerial incompetence. Will we soon have terminal ennui?