Liberal candidate tries to defend his sexist, racist Facebook posts

A disgraced Liberal Party candidate forced to quit from the Victorian state election has tried to defend some of his offensive sexist and racist Facebook posts in an embarrassing newspaper interview.

Jack Lyons, who was standing for the marginal seat of Bendigo West, quit yesterday two hours after he tried to convince the Herald Sun his social media posts were just jokes.

"I can't help what's there. I hope I haven't offended anyone," he said.

"I don't think I have. I'm a normal Aussie living life and enjoying it."

The newspaper has published a collection of his defences to some of the most inappropriate posts, which is the latest for the Napthine government following the withdrawal of candidate Aaron Lane over offensive posts on Twitter.

The defence of Jack Lyons

Facebook post: Mr Lyons mocked poverty in Africa by saying if they live in mud huts and "have to walk 5 miles everyday for water ... why not build the f---ing huts closer to the f---ing water".

He told the Herald Sun: "Isn't that common sense?"

Facebook post: Mr Lyons promoted the six great kings of "Drin-King, F---King, Lic-King, Suc-king, Span-king and Wan-king".

He told the Herald Sun: "I've got that one on a T-shirt."

Facebook post: Mr Lyons makes multiple references online to his love of pornography, including "You know you have a problem when every letter of the alphabet triggers a porn bonanza in your address bar".

He told the Herald Sun he wasn't obsessed with pornography: "I'm the same as everyone else. A lot of stuff gets sent to you and sometimes you might flick it on and sometimes you don't. I don't know, it's not something I go looking for."

Facebook post: He called Bendigo's historical Golden Dragon Museum "ching chong gardens".

He told the Herald Sun he could not explain his use of the term "chinky": "I don't know ... Isn't it in most of the movies and stuff you see? Isn't that in all the Hangover movies and all that?"

Liberal Party state director Damien Mantach was more scripted in his comment to the newspaper, saying Mr Lyons had withdrawn his candidacy after accepting the posts to his Facebook page in the years before his candidacy for the party were "juvenile and offensive".

"He has apologised unreservedly," Mr Mantach said.

Source: Herald Sun.