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(Tom: No surprise that they promised a Federal Independent Commission Against Corruption then failed to create one. What crook wants a cop shop in his area?
The Liberal/Nationals/Labor/Greens have sold us out.
Watch this and make your vote count!
https://www.topherfield.net/videos/preferential-voting-with-marbles-how-to-stick-it-to-the-major-parties-this-election/
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Australian Politics Watchdog can reveal that the Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Treasurer Josh Frydenberg have refused over many months to take any steps to repay to the taxpayer an estimated $140,000 in funds rorted by the party under their watch.
The office of the Assistant Treasurer Michael Sukkar was, by Mr Sukkar’s own admission, engaging public employees at taxpayer expense for more than a year to recruit Liberal party members, organise Liberal Party fundraising events as well as to help win votes for the party and influence for the Assistant Treasurer’s own faction.
Despite having full knowledge of the scandal for some months, the Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Treasurer Josh Frydenberg have taken no action to ensure a full and complete investigation is conducted into the extent of corruption, or to ensure the Party repays the money to the taxpayer, and these party leaders have avoided answering media questions.
In November last year, the Treasurer Mr Frydenberg assured the public that “any new information [on the scandal]… will be referred again to the finance department.”
Despite this promise, when new information emerged the next day, Mr Frydenberg never referred the matter for full investigation.
The new information included a personal confession by a former public officer to ’naively’ being involved in the corrupt scheme.
Former electorate officer Jessy Jayakumaran confirmed her involvement in the scheme, by doing work for the Liberal Party while she was on the public payroll and paid to work for constituents.
Ms Jayakumaran admitted she “naively“ helped recruit up to five new Liberal Party members a day in breach of a ban on party activity being conducted on taxpayer time, stating her attitude at the time to doing the illegal work was “OK, I’ll do whatever, what do you want me to do, as long as I need to get my wages.”
The use of publicly funded electorate officers for party-political purposes is a misuse of taxpayer funds and strictly prohibited.
Australian Politics Watchdog can now report that despite being aware of Ms Kumaran’s firsthand evidence of the scheme, Josh Frydenberg failed to refer the new information to the Department of Finance, failed to determine the cost to the taxpayer of the allegedly illegal scheme, (claiming the misuse was “not serious”), and failed to order the misused funds be repaid.
Assistant Treasurer Michael Sukkar also admitted that his office was involved in the allegedly corrupt scheme, but blamed one of his employees Josh Bonney for masterminding the scheme without his knowledge.
Mr Sukkar claims he sacked Mr Bonney for making electoral officers do non-electorate work., but failed to take any steps to repay the money used to engage the electoral officers in the work they performed for the Liberal Party.
Mr Sukkar claimed his electorate office staff had always been expected to obey the law and parliamentary policies.
However Nine Media reported that the Assistant Treasurer had “intimate knowledge” of the long-running scheme in which “his close friend, brother, and factional supporters were paid by taxpayers for political work.”
Nine Media published emails sent to the Assistant Treasurer by his staff about the corrupt scheme, to which Mr Sukkar replied “Well done!”
Regardless of whether the Assistant Treasurer knew of the scheme, having admitted to it being run from his office, Australian Politics Watchdog calls for Mr Sukkar to ensure that every hour of work conducted for the Liberal Party by publicly-funded staff, be repaid by the Party.
Australian Politics Watchdog can reveal that the prohibited scheme which ran from at least mid 2017 to mid 2018 cost the taxpayer upward of $140,000 which some party insiders put the total cost as much higher.
Auspol Watchdog demands that the Prime Minister and Treasurer as party leaders come clean with the electorate about exactly how many hours of work was done for the Liberal Party, and to make sure the Liberal Party pays back every single dollar.
Turning a blind eye to corruption, is in itself, corrupt.
If you mess up, ’fess up. And pay up.
Thank you for supporting the work of Australian Politics Watchdog for higher standards of integrity and honesty in Australian politics, and to safeguard Australian democracy at a time when it comes under unprecedented attack.
Kind regards
Georgina Clarke
Australian Politics Watchdog
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