Daily Telegraph Editorial: Sam Dastyari has done his dash

ULTIMATELY it was a question of if, not when. Sam Dastyari, one of the ALP’s rising stars, finally crashed irrevocably back to Earth yesterday after the build-up of stories about his involvement with Chinese donors became too much to bear.

ULTIMATELY it was a question of if, not when. Sam Dastyari, one of the ALP’s rising stars, finally crashed irrevocably back to Earth yesterday after the build-up of stories about his involvement with Chinese donors became too much to bear.

There is no question that Dastyari had to go. The slow drip  of revelations about his ­involvement with Chinese don­ors with close links to the communist party in Beijing, and particularly allegations that he warned Huang Xiangmo that his phone might be tapped by Australian security services, made his position untenable.

Had he not gone yesterday, the pressure would have only ramped up — particularly with further revelations reported today that Dastyari defending China and criticising the government on the very same day he attended a lunch with the principal of the Top Education Institute which famously paid the former senator’s travel overspend back in April 2015. In his speech he spoke of “challenging the foreign minister for asserting that Australia should prioritise our relationships with the United States and Japan at the expense of our relationship with China”, adding further weight to questions about just who the ex-senator was advocating for.

But Dastyari’s resignation does not end questions of China’s attempts to influence Australian politics. Hanging over all this is the question of who will wind up filling Dastyari’s vacancy in the upper house.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop yesterday flagged the possibility that Dastyari’s departure is part of an orchestrated strategy. Picture: John Feder

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop yesterday flagged the possibility that Dastyari’s departure is part of a broader, orchestrated strategy to give Kristina Keneally a consolation prize — albeit a very well remunerated and high profile one — in the form of a senate seat should she fail to topple Liberal John Alexander in Saturday’s Bennelong by-election.

While this may seem like a cynical take, Bill Shorten did not appear to rule out the possibility, saying enigmatically, “One thing I’m certain about, people want Kristina Keneally in federal politics. Our clear plan to is to see her elected Saturday as the member”. That may very well be the case, but should she not be successful — and current polls show the seat on a knife edge — NSW voters would surely look at an attempt to parachute her into the Senate as rank cynicism, and come the next election vote accordingly.

Cheaper option isn’t cheap

SO much for the stadium scare stories. While the fight drags on over the decision to invest in rebuilding Allianz and ANZ stadiums, with naysayers claiming the venues could be refurbished for a fraction of the $2 billion spend, The Daily Telegraph has obtained independent costing documents which show that even a partial refurbishment of Homebush alone could cost as much as $1.6 billion and still not give us a stadium capable of hosting world-class events. With Sydney on the back foot when it comes to the competition to host major events, these numbers only add to the case that rebuilding is the best investment.

Brush up our civics

AUSTRALIAN students are woefully ignorant of the way our society works. That’s the upshot of the latest results of the latest national civics and citizenship exams which found huge gaps in young people’s knowledge of the most basic aspects of Australia’s system of government.

While civics and citizenship may seem like a musty subject, the headlines over recent weeks and months about everything from dual nationalities to foreign donations suggest it has never been more important.

Primary school students have become the standard bearers for young Australians’ understanding of democracy at work.

A generation that grows up ignorant of the fundamentals of our democracy and our parliament and the fundamental rights and responsibilities that make our society among the most peaceful, prosperous and stable in the world will not long be able to continue to enjoy these benefits.

Education Minister Simon Birmingham is right to raise the alarm about these results, and he should demand answers about them not only from school systems but from the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority which is responsible for developing the study plans for ­students learning about our democracy.

Originally published as Daily Telegraph Editorial: Sam Dastyari has done his dash