From the desk of Roland Rocchiccioli – 30 January

The ignominy suffered by the world’s number one tennis player, Novak Djokovic, is lamentable; a national disgrace. Anomalies notwithstanding, that it came to this appalling pass is a sad reflection on the state of our nation, and the competence of those who are operationally responsible.

SUBJECTIVE prejudices, mis and dis-information, and conspiracy theories apart, there is one obviously pertinent question which remains: Why, if the rule calls for those entering this country to be vaccinated, was Djokovic issued with visa? Home Affairs Minister, Karen Andrews, has argued vaccination status – which is mandatory for entry – is not a condition for the granting a visa. Incredulously, a visa does not grant certain entry. Djokovic had a Clayton’s visa – the visa you have when you don’t have a visa! How is it possible to have one without the other? On reflection, it is difficult to conjure a more risible scenario.

Why, in the first instance, was Djokovic granted a visa?

Patently, Djokovic travelled here in good faith. He arrived, believing he had – as is said in modern parlance – ‘ticked all the required boxes’. He might rightly have assumed  armed with a visa – entry was a mere formality.

When the debacle began to unravel, and one might conjecture in an attempt to cover their own sinecures, a litany of red herrings were brought into play, all of which are pertinent but irrelevant to the core question; and furthermore, were revealed after the event.

The recent television postulations of Home Affairs Minister, Karen Andrews, are a total nonsense. The ruling should be simple and unambiguous: ‘no vaccination – no visa’. To argue hypothesis and future situations is irritating, political rhetoric.

From experience, those personalities who spend more time than most ‘on the road’, willingly sign the required customs forms with a cursory glance. It would be reasonable to assume Djokovic did not complete the relevant documentation. There is an expectation employees will have carried out the due diligence, and the answers accurately reflect the required legal status of the applicant.

Whether or not the Morrison Government accepts the notion, it is a reality: Internationally, Australia has been made a laughing-stock with its ham-fisted handling of Mr. Djokovic. They owe him an apology, and we deserve better!

Djokovic faces a potential three-year Australian entry ban. If only it were possible to apply the same exacting, draconian measures to some of our more recalcitrant, elected representatives.

It is a puzzlement. There are some in our community who, for no valid reason, are reluctant to accept responsibility for their own lives, or for those of their progeny.

Always there has been those for whom the trials and tribulations of mundane life are so overwhelming they could not survive without proper communal help. They deserve every possible assistance.

Conversely, there are those, and in ever increasing numbers it seems, who have learned to work the system to their advantage.

It was not always thus. I am of an age when idiosyncratic behaviour was less acceptable; there was a societal expectation of conformity. Those who elected to operate outside of clearly defined parameters were labelled, not disparagingly, no-hopers and wanderers.

Appropriately, children were the responsibility of parents. Mine were divorced; however, when it came time for me to be sent away to boarding school, my father sold his only asset, a house, for £250. It was expected, and was, he considered, the right and proper thing to do.

Technology has altered our lives, irrevocably. Social mores have changed, seismically, but not necessarily for the better. It is an age of entitlement. There is a pervading philosophy: do as little as possible, for as long as possible, and expect as much as possible in return.

There is a rupture which cannot continue. The system is broken and must be repaired. If we are to survive as a community, we must find a method leading to a more caring and balanced society.

Roland can be contacted via [email protected].