Zoe Wundenberg | Why my faith in govt has died a quick but silent death

That was the moment. The moment when the final straw was placed on the proverbial camel's back and any residual relic of faith I had clung to that the government was actually there to provide any sort of good faith service to the people of Australia died a quick but silent death. In fact, the hollowness of this last skerrick crumbling into the vacuum of political diatribe, lost forever, was resounding in the echoes of my resigned unsurprise.

It was the moment that Jason Rymen, former department of human services compliance and risk branch director, and one of two architects of robodebt, danced around the idea of him having prior knowledge of the scheme's potential illegality preceding its rollout at the robodebt royal commission, last week.

If anything, this royal commission has laid bare the full extent of the skills in Canberra involving blame-shifting, lacking memory, and a consistent commitment to finger pointing that relieves the momentary pressure of the hot seat. What appears to be sadly lacking is any sort of skill in taking responsibility for anything and actually governing in good faith.

But this reflects more than just frustration at the political class's continued shenanigans as it attempts to administer the country while doling out jobs, contracts, funds and bail-outs to mates (although that in itself is startlingly concerning). The sheer incompetence, the exposed lack of care or accountability in the management of their responsibilities, calls into question whether the government can pretend to be owed the presumption that they apply "reasonable" consideration of the facts, "reasonable" interpretation of the legislation, and "reasonable" weight to the impact of their decisions when administering government programs such as Workforce Australia.

In cases where program participants have had their payments cut off, demerits applied, suspensions threatened, why must the participant bear the onus to prove that this decision was unjust and unfair, when the government's track record suggests a reputation for dishonesty, erring on the side of cost saving measures at the expense of the wellbeing of the citizens, and a drastic disregard for participant mental health?

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The right to social security is enshrined in article 9 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which Australia is a party to, and yet we are all familiar with the contempt with which Australian governments have held those in need of the support.

When former prime minister Scott Morrison was the minister for social services (December 2014 - September 2015), he referred to himself as a "welfare cop", with Serena Wilson PSM, former deputy secretary of social services testifying at the royal commission that the culture of the department perpetuated a strong view of the "deserving" and "undeserving" poor: something I've written extensively on over the years.

Furthermore, both Wilson and former human services department manager Scott Britton have unequivocally stated that finding savings was the number one imperative of the department. This is a far cry from the initial purpose underpinning the establishment of the welfare state in Australia, which was to support all citizens in need, eliminate poverty and enhance health and wellbeing of the citizenry under the Re-establishment and Employment Act 1945, following the economic boom post World War II.

Why are our most vulnerable members of our communities now seemingly so resented by those in power, and by extension, by those of us influenced by the stereotypes peddled by government sound bites like "dole-bludger" and our all-time favourite, "the best form of welfare is a job"? When prosecution referrals for welfare fraud average 0.04 per cent of welfare recipients, this cannot be the reason, so what is? I honestly don't know.

Perhaps one of the most appalling milestone markers on the spiral down to the robodebt fiasco was then human services minister Alan Tudge's threats to those who owed a Centrelink debt. He stared down the camera and took on a poor-man's Liam Neeson from Taken as he said, "We'll find you, we'll track you down and you will have to repay those debts and you may end up in prison." Never has government hatred for a group of vulnerable citizens ever been so palpable.

All for the crime of suffering the inevitable poverty that a capitalist society creates.

How very "reasonable."