Liberal MP accused of using his daughter for a political stunt
Liberal MP Matt Bach has come under fire for posting a controversial photo of his three-year-old daughter.
The Victorian minister has been accused of using his daughter Phoebe in what is being described as a "cheap political stunt" following a statement from Premier Dan Andrews.
In the wake of growing COVID-19 cases in Victoria, the premier announced a ban on playgrounds among other measures to curb increasing cases form the Delta variant.
Bach is one of a fierce critic of the playground decision, describing it as “utterly unwarranted” and an example of overreach.
Last night, Bach took to social media to share a photo of his three-year-old daughter Phoebe at his local playground, gripping red-and-white caution tape that cordoned off equipment.
He simply captioned the image with three sad face emojis, which he shared on Twitter and Facebook.
Image credit: Twitter @bach_mp
The image caused a near instant reaction from his followers, many claiming what they saw was a political stunt.
“So you deliberately took your child to the playground you knew was closed so that you could try to point score, wow, what a great human you are,” one Twitter user wrote.
Another commenter said, “Did you explain to her that they’re closed in case she gets infected with a potentially deadly virus while she’s there?”
Labor MP Nick Staikos joined the flood of criticism, retweeting the image and saying: “Who would take a child to a playground knowing that it is closed? For a photo?”
Mr Bach quickly shot back at the opposition by tweeting, “You’re a flog. My wife took Phoebe to central gardens (where the Rocket Park is) for a run around on the grass after she spent all day inside. Quit being a SM troll and try fixing the mental health crisis you’ve created.”
Mr Bach expressed his concerns in an opinion piece in The Herald Sun saying his daughter was “a tough little bugger” but claiming “the Andrews government might have finally broken her”.
Image credits: Twitter @bach_mp