The shortlist for The Bug’s prestigious Australian of the Year Award for 2022 is already growing with one multi-nominated individual in particular catching the eye of the chair of the judging panel, this news site’s finance and investment columnist Morrie Bezzle.

Speaking from the Arthur Gorrie Remand Centre near Brisbane where he is being held on a variety of charges for alleged corporate and consumer affairs offences, Mr Bezzle (below) said judges would have a tough choice ahead of them.

“I’ll be announcing the winner of The Bug’s fifth Australian of the Year Award as usual on Australia Day on 26 January next year, provided I can secure bail,” he said.

“In the meantime I’ve been sifting through the nominations that have already arrived on my desk.

“To be accurate it’s not so much a desk but a stainless steel seatless dunny concreted into my cell wall. But it does the trick.”

Mr Bezzle said he had been especially intrigued by the six nominations of a Sydney man for different jobs he had undertaken in recent years.

“I can’t disclose the name of the person concerned at this stage, but I can say he has held one of the nation’s top jobs. One of the very top jobs in fact,” he said.

“Another interesting feature is the fact that this particular person has nominated himself for that job along with five others he held pretty much concurrently in recent years until losing them all a few months back.

“The bloke’s entry forms were a treat to read. He certainly deserves serious consideration for the sacrifices he made in all his jobs and for shepherding our nation through a crisis period as he explains in detail in his nomination forms.

“He also expressed his solid support for the award itself, signing off all six of his nomination forms with a cheery ‘How good is the The Bug’s Australian of the Year Award?”

“I reckon he might be in with a big chance,” Mr Bezzle said.

Previous winners of the AOTY Award (clockwise from top left in main picture) have been:

2018 – businessman and political party founder Clive Palmer for his charitable work supporting News Crap Australia publications through advertising,

2019 – teenage environmental activist Scomo Turdberg for her unique approach advocating for climate change,  

2020 – National Party Senator Bridget McKenzie for introducing innovative funding distribution models in the former Morrison Government, and   

2021 – News Crap Australia commentator James Morrow for his services to political fiction writing.