How Daniel Andrews divided Victoria with world’s longest Covid lockdown that earned him the name ‘Dictator Dan’ – but some diehard fans will still shed a tear, writes WAYNE FLOWER
‘Good riddance’.
For example, callers on Melbourne radio on Tuesday welcomed the shock resignation of Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews.
“I’m going to work on beer tonight,” someone told 3AW, referring to the now former prime minister’s famous Covid joke.
LIVE BLOG: Daniel Andrews resigns as Premier of Victoria
Dan Andrews and his family (pictured voting last year) at his election victory in the ‘Danslide’ state
Word of Mr Andrews’ departure caused champagne corks to pop across Victoria – not least among the state’s coalition, but also among the large percentage of residents who soured on him during the pandemic.
For many Victorians, Mr Andrews was the face of pain and misery, a man who had locked them in a cage for the longest time on earth during Covid 19.
Less than a year ago, Victorians voted back for the man dubbed ‘Dictator Dan’ during lockdowns.
Those who despised him could never understand how his third victory had come about – and in such a resounding manner, hailed as a ‘Danslide’.
Independent Ian Cook was treated to royal status in November when the first voters arrived to vote at the traditionally safe seat of the Victorian premier, Mulgrave.
But they did vote and elected Andrews on the back of an insipid opposition plagued by bitter infighting.
Victorian Premier Dan Andrews as he appeared during Victoria’s six lockdowns
A professional Ian Cook car parked outside the Mulgrave voting centre, labeling Dan Andrews a ‘liar’ and showing him with his fingers in his ears
Independent Ian Cook (pictured) tried to topple the Prime Minister but failed
In a sign of how vitriolic the public debate had become, a ‘cooker’ protest group brought a gallows and an effigy of the Victorian premier to Melbourne in 2021.
‘Chairman Dan’ – another of his nicknames – always had his fans.
In the early days of the Covid pandemic, Mr Andrews was talked about as a possible Prime Minister, such was his strong stance and response to the potential risk of the disease.
It was bold leadership that was sorely lacking at the time we left Canberra.
But as lockdowns continued, many Victorians grew to resent his daily media conferences.
Dressed in his The North Face jacket, Mr Andrews shouted out the number of infected, the number of deaths and the number of days Victorians had been in lockdown.
He posted pictures on social media of ‘doughnuts’ when no one was infected and sparked outrage when he posted an image of the top shelf whiskey he planned to drink when lockdowns ended.
All the while, Andrews’ fans continued to treat him with unwavering admiration.
They made T-shirts and cups with his likeness and turned his chief health officer Brett Sutton into some kind of sex symbol.
With playgrounds closed and swings padlocked, the Prime Minister’s fan club castigated those who dared to complain.
His media allies would label Victorians selfish, idiots, dangerous and downright mean for showing even a hint of ancestry.
They supported him when mothers were arrested at home for speaking out against his lockdowns.
During the early lockdowns, the Prime Minister and his minions had blamed everyone for the spread of the virus from Victorian families and their inability to get the jab quickly enough – despite a complete lack of available vaccines.
Police attack protesters at Melbourne’s Shrine of Remembrance during a protest against Covid-19 regulations in Melbourne on September 22, 2021.
Protesters are gassed during the protest against the Shrine of Remembrance
Heavily armed police bombarded protesters with rubber bullets and gas canisters
And when Melburnians took to the streets to protest, they were blamed as the reason why Victorians were locked down again.
By then the Prime Minister had turned Melbourne into a ghost town inhabited only by soldiers and parking inspectors.
When demonstrators went to the Shrine of Remembrance on September 21, they were met by police in tanks with gas grenade launchers and rubber bullets.
These were ugly scenes in which men, women, children and dogs were shot at for exercising their democratic right to protest.
Property was destroyed, cars were damaged and ordinary people were injured.
This was ‘Chairman Dan’s’ Victoria and he ruled it with an iron fist.
But when the orange dust settled, Mr Andrews continued to duck and fight his way out of trouble.
The response was sometimes ugly: in one gruesome scene, fringe protesters erected a gallows and pretended to hang an effigy of him on the streets of Melbourne.
The Victorian Prime Minister celebrates Covid zero with top-shelf whisky
Victorians will never forget it was his failed hotel quarantine program killed more than 800, mostly elderly.
He told an inquiry into the disaster that he regretted his government’s disastrous decision to deploy private security guards at quarantine hotels.
“Mistakes have been made in this program and answers are needed,” Mr Andrews said.
“These mistakes are unacceptable to me… I want to make it very clear to every member of the Victorian community that I am sorry for what happened here and I would like to offer an unreserved apology to all Victorians.”
But Mr Andrews insisted he did not know who made that decision.
The investigation would mean the end of several ministers and the police commissioner.
But ‘Chairman Dan’ survived to fight another day.
In the final months of Andrews’ rule, he remained embroiled in ugly feuding with the former chief of Victoria’s integrity watchdog.
Former IBAC boss Robert Redlich attacked the prime minister, accusing him of trying to “cover up and disguise” the findings of a recent investigation.
Once again, Mr Andrews dismissed the criticism.
He ends his time at the top of Victoria’s political table, untarnished by the taint of corruption.
His haters compare him to a ‘mafia boss’.
His fans say a silent prayer of thanks.