Liberal Party Candidate Jaymes Diaz Disastrous Campaign Interview Goes Viral

Australia’s first day of election campaigning has become a disaster for Liberal Party’s Jaymes Diaz. The candidate for the Greenway district in western Sydney was unable to name his own party’s Coalition policy during a television interview, and his gaffe is going viral online.

Mr Diaz, who lost out the MP seat to Labor’s Michelle Rowland for Greenway in 2010, which therefore cost Opposition leader Tony Abbott a place in The Lodge, appeared nervous on Monday as Channel 10 reporter John Hill interrogated him about the Liberals’ plans.

When the interview reached the issue of asylum-seekers arriving by boat, Mr Diaz blamed Prime Minister Kevin Rudd for the 48,000 illegal boat arrivals.

He mentioned that his party has a six-point plan to “stop the boats,” but when asked what those points are, Mr Diaz visibly struggled to name one.

“I can run through all the details of the points, but look, the main thing is...” Mr Diaz started but was interrupted by the reporter to stay with the topic.

“The six points, [what are] the six points?” the reporter urged.

“Here’s the thing, the boat started under Kevin Rudd. Under the Coalition government we’d stopped the boat. There were only four people in detention. And now, under the Labor government, we have 48,000 illegal arrivals,” he continued. “And we have a plan to stop the boats.”

“And the six points are?”

“Well, one of the points would be stopping the boats when it’s safe to do so. We have a plan to stop the boats. Under the Labor party...” Mr Diaz started, but the interviewer reminded him that they were not talking about the Labor party, but the Liberal party.

“What are the other five points?”

“I’ve answered your question.”

“You said turn back the boats. You told me it was a six-point plan. What are the other five points?”

“We have a plan to stop the boats. I’ve answered that,” the candidate insisted.

Mr Diaz never detailed his party’s six-point plan, though, so the interviewer moved on to other issues. Another issue that has seemingly made Mr Diaz nervous and unable to answer properly was the paid parental leave scheme.

As if on cue, his minder stopped the interviewer, saying his time was up.

“We support families,” Mr Diaz lamely answered in the end.

Mr Abbott quickly defended his candidate, though. He told ABC radio on Tuesday that he called Mr Diaz to “commiserate with him.”

“I gather he had done two good interviews and then he throws up in the third,” Mr Abbott explained. “I’m afraid it happens to all of us from time to time.”

He also blamed Mr Diaz’s blunder to the Channel 10 reporter, saying, “Inevitably, a very experienced and slightly aggressive journalist shoves a microphone in your face and starts barking at you and it is possible to freeze. I’ve done it myself.”

He added, “He’s a relatively young bloke, he’s in his early 30s, he has a lot of potential, he’s quite smart, he’s very well connected in the area.”