Now just a backbencher, he had time on Thursday night to post on Facebook that he was "amused" with memes poking fun at what he had done in secretly co-opting the jobs of his ministers.

Why stop at five covert ministries when you can be exposed as a secret Sharks captain, car mechanic, tree lopper, a comedian or as a women's clothes model?

It went on for hours.

"As Aussies we can always have a chuckle at ourselves. Have a good evening," the former prime minister offered.

But there's the public having a giggle and then there's the architect of it all doing the same.

Publicly, his colleagues have been fairly kind, but privately, the shock continues and everyone is waiting for what the Solicitor-General makes of it when the second law officer in the land, Stephen Donaghue, reports back to the Prime Minister on Monday.

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Why so serious?

"Our parliamentary democracy is precious," Anthony Albanese told 4CA on Friday.

"It relies upon checks and balances. It relies upon ministerial accountability. I think Australians are quite rightly shocked."

There's the still open question of whether it was legal. He did not tell the people, the parliament or the ministers. Did he have to?

Some of this controversy relies on convention, which muddies things, but some senior non-legal minds, such as Barnaby Joyce, have declared it is legal.

Others like former prime minister and concerted Morrison critic Malcolm Turnbull have posed an alternative.

"Doesn't our fundamental democratic values mean that in order for a person to exercise the power of 'the minister' they must be publicly declared as such?" he tweeted.

The potential for conflicting advice is also a minefield.

The one known use of ministerial powers over the PEP-11 gas exploration lease is concerning, but for the Solicitor-General to decide.

It does, however, throw out the argument that Mr Morrison was trying to save us all from the "raging tempest" of the pandemic. More like save his bacon.

There are serious questions as to how and why unelected officials in the Prime Minister's office and department knew about this scheme and the ministers involved - bar Greg Hunt and belatedly Keith Pitt - did not. Not to mention the two journalists who wrote the book which spilled the beans.

There are also valid questions about pushback from either the public service or the Governor-General. What happened to "frank and fearless" advice?

There is such an addiction to secrecy in Australian politics. Like the frog in the proverbial pot, the secrecy boil has been heating up to the point that integrity-championing teals kicked out Liberals from blue ribbon seats.

Think Operation Sovereign Borders. Think the deliberations of national cabinet. Think the Hawaii holiday.

No "first among equals", Mr Morrison drew power to himself and used it when it suited him. Is this good government?

It might be a joke to poke at what Mr Morrison has done on the sly, but the repercussions are not that funny.