Matthew Guy caught in embarrassing snafu over Frankston cafe visit

It should have been a simple photo-op for Matthew Guy; a chance to spruik his power price policies during a prearranged, meet and greet with a cafe owner.

Victorian Leader of the Opposition Matthew Guy speaks with cafe owner Miriam Jamil in Frankston, Melbourne, Monday, November 19, 2018. The opposition leader was speaking about the cost of living ahead of the Victorian State election on Saturday. (AAP Image/David Crosling) NO ARCHIVING

It is chaos theory meets modern campaigning; just when you think you’ve left nothing to chance in the uber-sanitised, highly stage managed business of on-the-bus politics, the messy complexities of life find a way.

This should have been a simple photo-op for Matthew Guy; a chance to spruik his policies to lower electricity prices during a prearranged, meet and greet with a cafe owner in a marginal seat.

The trouble was, Mariam Jamil isn’t a cafe owner at all. At least, not according to the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation; the statutory agency responsible for approving the liquor license for the Frankston premises that Mr Guy’s campaign staff chose as the setting for Monday morning’s set-piece.

Ms Jamil introduced herself as a single mother of three adult children who increasingly, is having to work round the clock because she can’t afford to pay staff due to the spiralling cost of electricity. She said that over the last four years, the cost of power had increased by the equivalent of 700 coffees a month.

She said she ran the cafe with her daughter, Jamila Dib, and was worried about the impact that rising power prices were having on their business.

“You have got to cut somewhere and the first place we have control of is wages,’’ she said. “So you start cutting down wages, which is not good for employment and not good for business.’’

Victorian Leader of the Opposition Matthew Guy is seen with wife Renae Guy, right, Liberal candidate for Frankston Michael Lamb, second left, and cafe owner Mariam Jamil, left, in the Frankston cafe. Picture: AAP

This may all be true. Power prices are a pressing issue for many small businesses and households, as state and federal politicians understand only too well. The difficulty for Ms Jamal is that, if there are decisions to be made about wages and staffing at the Beach 162 restaurant and cafe, they shouldn’t be hers to make.

In 2015, Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton opposed an application to transfer a liquor licence to the new owners, Mariam Jamil and her daughter, on the grounds that Ms Jamil had that year been convicted of a drug offence.

The VCGLR commissioner who heard the case, Des Powell, approved the transfer against the police objections. However, he made his ruling conditional on the cafe being run by Jamila Dib, not her mum.

“The application is granted subject to several conditions being placed on the licence,’’ the Judgement read. “Such conditions are designed to ensure that Ms Jamil remains a person who is not an associate of the applicant, and that Ms Dib remains responsible for the operation and management of the premises.’’

Victorian Leader of the Opposition Matthew Guy alights his campaign bus in Frankston with wife Renae Guy, left, and Liberal candidate for Frankston Michael Lamb in Melbourne. Picture: AAP

The first condition stipulated: “Mariam Adel Jamil must not participate in the management or control of the subject premises.’’

When Channel Nine journalist Brett McLeod later revealed this to Mr Guy, the Opposition Leader did well not to choke on his latte.

“I don’t know her details,’’ he stammered. “All I know is she is a cafe owner that is paying enormous bills. And like every other Victorian small businessperson they have suffered enormously under the Andrews Government.’’

“You are asking me about a liquor licence application and someone’s background that I don’t know the details of,’’ he protested. “I don’t have access to the LEAP database.’’

You don’t need access to the Victoria Police database to access the VCGLR finding about Ms Jamil; a quick Google brings up the 14-page judgment. Even if you did, Mr Guy should have been in safe hands. The Liberal Party candidate for Frankston, a regular at the Beach 162 cafe, is Senior Sergeant Lamb.

When not on the hustings with the Opposition Leader, he runs the Frankston police station.

For a would-be State premier who has staked his election prospects on a zero tolerance approach to law and order and putting Victorians “back in control,’’ it is an embarrassing snafu just five days before the polls close.

For Ms Jamil, the repercussions could be more serious. Mr Guy’s campaign bus might not be the last official visit at her Frankston restaurant.