Mark Latham has doubled down on refusing to apologize for a homophobic tweet he has since deleted about a fellow NSW politician.
The leader of the One Nation NSW broke his silence on Saturday over the vile post he posted about openly gay Independent MP Alex Greenwich.
“When you throw insults in public life, sometimes they come at you harder and more truthfully… So boo-hoo Alex Greenwich,” he told The Saturday Telegraph.
His comment comes two days after he posted the disparaging tweet in which he made a crude reference to same-sex sexual intercourse.
Mark Latham has broken his silence over a homophobic tweet he has since deleted about Independent MP Alex Greenwich
Mr Latham fired off the tweet after being labeled a ‘disgusting human being’ by Mr Greenwich for attending a rally where Christians clashed with LGBTQI activists outside St Michaels Church in Belfield, southwest Sydney, on 21 March.
‘Awful? How does that compare to sticking your dick in a guy’s ass and covering him in shit?” Mr. Latham wrote.
Mr Latham deleted the tweet after the backlash but posted another cryptic post on Friday saying ‘never apologize, never explain’.
The post was subsequently deleted and Mr Latham remained silent on the matter, before finally releasing a statement two days after the homophobic tweet.
Mr Latham chose to continue his attack on Mr Greenwich.
“If he calls someone a disgusting human being for attending a meeting in a church hall, perhaps attention will turn to some of his habits,” he said.
Mr Latham explained the reason why he deleted the tweet, although he does not apologize for posting it.
“Greenwich goes to schools to talk to kids about being gay,” he said.
“I didn’t want to be accused of something similar, leaving that kind of content on my socials.”
Daily Mail Australia contacted Mr Latham and Mr Greenwich for comment.
NSW Environment Minister Penny Sharpe was the latest to join the pile, saying the tweet was ‘completely unacceptable’ and again calling on Mr Latham to apologise.
“Mark Latham and his behavior over the past few days is completely unacceptable,” Ms Sharpe said.
“There is no place for it in NSW. There is no place for it in NSW politics. There is no place for it in our community.’
Late on Friday night, Mr Latham tweeted ‘Never apologize, never explain’ in response to his own homophobic tweet which sparked widespread condemnation and led NSW Prime Minister Chris Minns to label him a ‘bigger’.
“I think they are vile and embarrassing remarks and I think (Mr Latham) has come out as bigoted,” the prime minister said on Friday.
Mr Greenwich was an “extremely effective” politician who “is managing to take the conversation to the next level and make big changes in the state,” Mr Minns said.
“One of the things that shouldn’t be forgotten is that comments like this, while horrible in their own right, do cast ghosts on people like Alex.
“It’s not what we need in public life.
“There must be unequivocal and universal condemnation of these comments,” he said.
The leader of the One Nation NSW remained unapologetic on Saturday about the vile post he posted about the openly gay independent MP
Parliament is currently unable to discipline Mr Latham, Ms Sharpe said, because he used a loophole in the upper house system that allowed him to step down as an MP before the state election and contest his seat again.
Mr Latham will return to parliament at the next session, with a renewed eight-year term.
“The best thing Mr Latham can do is apologize to Mr Greenwich,” said Mrs Sharpe.
“That’s what we want him to do today.
“Let’s see what happens after pushing the button on the vote in the upper house on April 20.”
One Nation federal leader Pauline Hanson and conservative commentators Ray Hadley and Andrew Bolt also criticized Latham for the tweet.
The tweet was also called disgusting by Transport Minister Jo Haylen, who said she didn’t think the NSW One Nation leader was up to the job.
“Of course he should apologise, but it’s Mark Latham. I don’t think anyone should hold their breath.
“Personally, I don’t think he’s fit for public office.”
The homophobic attack briefly brought Mr Greenwich to tears on Thursday, the Sydney Popular MP told reporters.
“This obviously hurt me. I cried a little bit at the end of the day yesterday,” he told reporters on Friday.
“After ten years in this gig and being re-elected, I didn’t think I would still be a victim of homophobic abuse.”
However, Mr Greenwich refused to call on Mr Latham to apologize or resign.
“I don’t want to give him another soapbox to pretend to be a victim if he wants to victimize people.”