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Downfall
In 1987 Bjelke-Petersen made an extraordinary political move, launching a
campaign for the Prime Ministership, working against the Nationals' usual
coalition partner, the Liberal Party (under the leadership of John Howard). The
"Joh for Canberra" campaign, abandoned after it became clear that there was no
prospect of success, was a significant factor in the victory of incumbent Labor
Prime Minister, Bob Hawke. The State Secretary of the Labor Party (and later
Queensland Premier), Peter Beattie remarked "we couldn't have done it without
Joh".
Also in 1987, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation investigative journalism
program Four Corners aired an episode entitled "The Moonlight State" alleging
high-level corruption in the Queensland Police, including the receipt of bribes
from owners of illegal brothels. At the time the program aired, Bjelke-Petersen
was involved in his aborted national political campaign and was outside
Queensland.
In response to these allegations, Acting Premier Bill Gunn announced an inquiry.
It was clear that Bjelke-Petersen had always opposed any inquiry into the
Queensland Police, and his biographers have asserted that had he not been out of
the state, this inquiry would never have been held.
The two-year-long Commission of Inquiry into "Possible Illegal Activities and
Associated Police Misconduct" was chaired by barrister Tony Fitzgerald and known
as the Fitzgerald Inquiry. As it began, evidence of corruption was unearthed
implicating not only Police Commissioner Lewis, but also senior members and
associates of the Bjelke-Petersen government. As a result of the inquiry, Lewis
was stripped of his knighthood, tried, convicted, and jailed on corruption
charges. A number of other officials, including ministers Lane and Austin were
also jailed. Another former minister, Russ Hinze, died while awaiting trial.
Bjelke-Petersen gave evidence before the Inquiry himself, denying all knowledge
of any wrongdoing. His standing was damaged, however, by his inability to
account for large sums of cash in his office safe and when he demonstrated his
ignorance of the separation of powers, a basic principle of accountable
government.
The Bjelke-Petersen government's decline in political standing prompted fierce
conflict between his supporters and his detractors within the Nationals'
partyroom. Sir Robert Sparkes, the State Secretary of the party, who for decades
had been Bjelke-Petersen's influential sponsor, withdrew his support and the two
became enemies. When in late 1987 Bjelke-Petersen announced government support
for construction of the "world's tallest building" in Brisbane, a pet project of
a member of the "white shoe brigade", a number of ministers strongly protested.
Bjelke-Petersen then met with State Governor Sir Walter Campbell in an effort to
restructure his Cabinet and purge dissenters from the ministry. After a period
of negotiation, Sir Walter agreed to sack three ministers.
Bjelke-Petersen denied his National Party opponents the opportunity to confront
him by refusing to call a meeting of the party's parliamentarians. Eventually,
the organisational wing of the party intervened and called one. Bjelke-Petersen
request that Nationals MPs join him in a boycott went unheeded, and the meeting
deposed him as National Party leader and elected in his place Mike Ahern, one of
the ministers he had sacked.
Bjelke-Petersen refused to resign as Premier. The stand-off was resolved after a
period of negotiation, when Bjelke-Petersen resigned as Premier and from
Parliament. In the subsequent by-election for his seat, he ensured that a
radical right-wing independent rather than the Nationals' endorsed candidate was
successful. He worked openly to destabilise the Nationals' leadership, and at
the next election Labor returned to office after 32 years in opposition.
In 1991 Bjelke-Petersen faced criminal trial for perjury arising out of the
evidence he had given to the Fitzgerald Inquiry (an earlier proposed charge of
corruption was incorporated into the perjury charge). The jury in the case
remained deadlocked and failed to reach a unanimous verdict. In 1992 it was
revealed that the jury foreman was a member of the National Party, but the
Director of Public Prosecutions elected not to proceed with a second trial.
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