Graphic videos and images of staff members performing sex acts inside the Parliament House in Canberra surfaced, rattling the Australian government. Prime Minister Scott Morrison confirmed that a government aide has been fired after the videos were released by a whistleblower.
In a statement issued, the Prime Minister asked anyone with more information to come forward. "The actions of these individuals show a staggering disrespect for the people who work in Parliament, and for the ideals the Parliament is supposed to represent. Everyone has a right to feel safe at work. I will have more to say on this and the cultural issues we confront as a Parliament in coming days," he said.
Aide Masturbated on the Desk of Female MP
Speaking to Ten News, the whistleblower who said the graphic sexual content was shared on the Facebook Messenger group set up by a small group of staffers where they regularly shared such content.
The images shared by the whistleblower includes one which shows a man sitting at a desk, exposing himself next to a copy of the Parliament House rulebook. In another video, a man points to the desk of a female Liberal MP before performing a solo sex act on it, the outlet reported.
The man, who refused to reveal his identity, also claimed that a room, also known as the prayer room, located on the upper level of the building was used by government officials and MPs to have sex. He also added that to please Coalition MPs, staffers were asked to hire and invite sex workers inside the parliament building.
Insisting that "now is the time to speak up," the whisteblower said, "The culture needs to change and now is the time to speak up, now is the time to put it on the record. It is a culture of men thinking that they can do whatever they want."
Australian PM Calls The Reports Disgusting
Reacting sharply to the reports of sexual acts being performed inside the parliament building, Morrison called them "disgusting and sickening."
7News reported that in a statement issued, the PM said, "It's not good enough, and is totally unacceptable. The people who come to work in this building are better than this." Morrison also added that the staff member was identified and the government "terminated his employment immediately."
Demanding an immediate firing of the coalition staffers, Finance Minister Simon Birmingham said that after the story went to air he was "disgusted and appalled".
"It shows a complete disregard for all our parliamentary democracy stands for. It also demonstrates an enormous disrespect for the employing member or senator in relation to those staff and those officers. It equally shows a complete contempt for the Australian taxpayers who have paid the wages for such staff and, in my opinion, any individuals who engaged in such activity ought to prepare to pack their bags and leave the building for good," he added according to the outlet.
