Leading health union calls for Premier to sack ‘clueless’ Health Minister Mikakos

A leading health union is calling on Daniel Andrews to axe his “clueless” Health Minister, accusing Jenny Mikakos of “breathtaking incompetence” which they say all Victorians are now paying for amid our crippling second coronavirus wave.

A leading health union is calling on Daniel Andrews to sack his “clueless” Health Minister Jenny Mikakos, accusing her of “breathtaking incompetence”.

Ahead of the embattled health minister’s appearance at the hotel quarantine inquiry on Thursday, Health Workers Union boss Diana Asmar has begged the Premier to demand Ms Mikakos’s resignation.

“For the good of your government, for the good of health workers I represent, and for the good of all Victorians, Ms Mikakos must go,” she wrote in a letter to Mr Andrews on Wednesday.

She said that in all the union’s dealings with the health minister, “not once has she displayed even a basic understanding of her portfolio.”

The 16,000 strong union, which represents hospital and aged-care workers, has been battling the government over inadequate supplies of protective equipment for its members.

But now it has declared war on the Andrews Government over its decision to rebuild the Frankston Hospital as a public-private partnership, saying it will campaign against the Labor Party at the next election.

“In Victoria, aged care cleaners, admin workers and cooks have acquired covid, as have registered nurses and patient care workers,” Ms Asmar wrote, “yet aged care workers are treated differently with respect to accessing sufficient levels” of protective equipment.

Victoria's CHO Brett Sutton, Minister for Health Jenny Mikakos and Premier Daniel Andrews arrive to a press conference

Accusing Ms Mikakos of ignoring warnings over shortages, Ms Asmar claims “more deaths in Victorian aged care homes will ensue” unless the government changes the way it distributes it.

Saying she “was accustomed to dealing with individuals who display pomposity and arrogance, even when their ability does not warrant it”, Ms Asmar denied the call was the result of a personality clash between the pair.

“This is entirely about Ms Mikakos’ competence as your Health Minister, which is at the heart of your government’s response to this current pandemic,” she said.

Describing her office as “utterly dysfunctional” Ms Asmar said that since Ms Mikakos had become minister after the 2018 election “we have seen repeated mismanagement” of the Victorian health system.

“All Victorians are seemingly paying a price for her incompetence, ” she said.

Health Workers Union boss Diana Asmar. Picture: Peter Ristevski

Herald Sun, Thursday. Download the digital print edition (subscribers only)

Ms Asmar said the “final straw” for the union had been a meeting on Monday to discuss the Frankston Hospital rebuild at which she said the minister had delivered “scripted notes” and failed to answer simple questions.

“She had no understanding of the difference between clinical roles and non-clinical roles within a hospital, nor could she comprehend the details of the PPP proposal,” she said.

“This hazy blankness displayed by Ms Mikakos about the Victorian health system also occurred in our first ‘meet and greet’ in early 2019.

“You’d think after 18 months she’d have gained some understanding of her portfolio, given its significance” but “she is still clueless”.

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Originally published as Leading health union calls for Premier to sack ‘clueless’ Health Minister Mikakos