‘He’s in the wrong postcode’: Ex-politican’s ‘offensive’ post angers ritzy suburbs
A post made by a controversial former politician has been removed from a 9800-member suburban Facebook group after it reached a “threshold” of complaints.
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What is it with former politicians refusing to ride off into the sunset? So many seem incapable of accepting their opinion no longer carries the weight it might once have, and fight for an extra five minutes of fame.
Whether it’s on national issues such as the Indigenous Voice to Parliament – cue ex-PMs Tony Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull, the latter being the worst offender for butting in instead of bowing out – or on local matters, there is never a shortage of egos craving relevance.
To be fair, some ex-pollies do have viewpoints worth listening to, but it’s important they read the room.
Former Queensland premier Peter Beattie did just that when suggesting longstanding Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk set up a succession plan.
Mr Beattie wrote in The Courier-Mail “government should always be about what’s good for the people and the nation, not the leader”.
True that. He assessed the current climate and community sentiment before piping up (not that Ms Palaszczuk chose to listen).
And then you have clowns like Jonathan Sriranganathan.
Remember him? He’s the former councillor for the Gabba Ward who stepped down in May but while in office endorsed and participated in mass protests during the height of the Covid pandemic, ignoring health-informed government directives.
He was the councillor who said the answer to reducing crime was fewer police, and whose bright idea to curb the housing crisis was to show people how to use Census data to identify empty homes in which to “squat”.
Mr Sriranganathan made the news again last week when it was revealed he was the sole Greens nominee for Brisbane City Lord Mayor in 2024. Adrian Schrinner needn’t be worried.
This bloke is a loose cannon.
At midday on Wednesday this week, Mr Sriranganathan jumped on a community Facebook page for the Liberal-held suburbs of Hamilton, Ascot and Hendra in Brisbane’s north.
Screenshots of his post were sent to me by residents riled by his politicking and “offensive” suggestions.
“He’s a blow-in trying to create a stir but he’s in the wrong postcode,” one said.
The administrator of the 9800-member group told me the post had been automatically removed after reaching a “threshold” of complaints.
Facebook’s Admin Assist function deleted “spam, fraud and offensive posts immediately”, rather than waiting for an administrator, he said.
So what was so offensive?
Mr Sriranganathan pontificated on the demise of horse racing and suggested repurposing Eagle Farm and Doomben race tracks … to an audience in Ascot and Hendra, where horse racing is entrenched.
The first races in Eagle Farm were held in 1865; in Doomben, 1933. Even people who object to the sport cannot ignore its boost to the local economy, including restaurants, bars and boutiques. But failing to read the room, Mr Sriranganathan posted:
“I hope I don’t put any noses out of joint by asking this, but I think it’s an important long-term conversation, particularly for the future of Ascot and indeed the entire city.
“Horseracing is declining in popularity, and at some point in the future, it seems likely – perhaps inevitable – that both Eagle Farm and Doomben racecourses would be shut down, and the land repurposed for something else.
“This could take a while to happen – perhaps decades – but the blunt reality is that cultural values are shifting and horseracing is becoming less and less fashionable. So what will happen to the land the race tracks are on? It might be used for building housing with new apartments, or the parkland and sports fields and nature reserves, or for something else entirely.
“Brisbane Racing Club (organisation that currently owns the tracks) is already branching into poker machines as an alternative revenue source, but I don’t think anyone would want to see a new casino on the site.
“The Eagle Farm racetrack site alone is a whopping 40+ hectares (almost 60 full-size soccer fields), so you could do a huge amount with the land (of course there are certain limiting considerations like the airport flight parts). So I thought I’d just pose the question and start a respectful discussion … What are people’s long-term visions for Eagle Farm and Doomben race course sites?”
I don’t know about long-term visions but people’s immediate vision was to shut down this idiot.
And Facebook did. If only we could quiet the white noise from other ex-pollies who have nothing worth saying but say it anyway.
Kylie Lang is Associate Editor of The Courier-Mail
kylie.lang@news.com.au
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