The father of a Sydney boy with cerebral palsy claims his son was used for an election stunt by former prime minister John Howard.

Mr Howard paid a visit to the Terrey Hills home of 11-year-old Daniel Clarke on November 5, in the midst of the election campaign, to announce funds to save endangered orang-utans in Borneo and Sumatra.

Daniel lobbied Mr Howard about the plight of the apes after a chance meeting in the Australian rugby team’s dressing room in May.

Daniel’s father, Rodney Clarke, 40, said he has now been informed the $200,000 is no longer going ahead because it was an election promise.

“The prime minister looked into my son’s eyes and made him a promise,” he said.

“Daniel had worked so hard and faithfully to make a difference and at no time did the prime minister indicate that this commitment would be an election promise.

“My wife and I raise our children on values in which your word is your bond, which made it particularly difficult for us to explain the prime minister’s actions to Daniel.”

A letter from Malcolm Turnbull, dated November 9, confirms the funding and does not specify it as an election promise. It reads: “I am delighted to advise that the Australian Government has agreed to provide funding of $200,000 in 2007/08 to the Australian Orang-utan Project (AOP) to continue the valuable work of the orang-utan protection units.”

Heritage Strategy Branch assistant secretary Greg Terrill withdrew the funding commitment in an email.

“The minister’s decision to provide new funding to support the work of the orang-utan protection units was made during the caretaker period and is considered by the department to be an election commitment,” he wrote.

An earlier commitment announced in August, before the election campaign, to an American group, the National Conservancy, and worth $500,000, is still going ahead.

But the $200,000 to the Australian group, promised after the meeting with the Clarkes, is funding that has been identified as an election promise.

Daniel Clarke has now written to Prime Minister Kevin Rudd in an appeal for the funding to go ahead. He is still waiting for a response.

Source: http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,22929893-5006009,00.html

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