Minister for Public Employment – in the interest of transparency and accountability, what is the itemised total cost to taxpayers to complete this investigation and report?
Charlie, have you met the new OCPE head, God knows where they found her?
I doubt the occupants of seats at OCPE, mainly made up of: -unqualified bimbo’s, -a qualified English Teacher, -highly qualified PHD holding airhead with a unbelievable, eye wateringly embarrassing research thesis and -NT-Police-College-destroying walking disaster would have a clue about what you just asked for.
I did not criticise the CPE or her staff- there is no reason to do so. I trust with the benefit of hindsight you will withdraw the misogynistic reference to female staff in OCPE. I am trying to advance a simple proposition – why are Territorians governed in secret? Why can’t the Minister for Public Employment publish an itemised break up of costs incurred investigating and reporting on complaints against Riches in the public interest? She could do this today.
This man was hired by people with a tonne to hide, namely NT Legend former CM Michael Gunner (who got investigated and cleared by ICAC), NTPS head Jodie Ryan (whose bro is the legendary Andrew Kirkman).
What a fantastic quality hire. The whole fiasco sums up how the NT has been governed!!
And after all that, he is able to resign rather than be sacked. This is a pretty standard practice in the executive world where they are found in breach of the standards they are paid, significantly high sums, to uphold. They are allowed to simply resign, and not carry the stigma of being sacked is a miscarriage of justice. Too many executives and politicians get away with far too much.
The angel on Jim Jefferies' left shoulderon May 26, 2025 at 7:10 pm
First: we love the headline, it seems you’re on the punny train too. Good work NTI.
Second: while we welcome some form of publication, we have reservations for any ‘findings’ made in this way. We know many people who have been victims of NT Government self-labelled ‘substantiated’ findings in the past regardless of whether the investigation was conducted by a lawyer or not.
Some legal investigators are chosen because they might be government friendly. We’re not claiming this one is, just putting it out there that this happens more often than you all realise. Don’t be fooled simply by the lawyer-authority tag.
One famous favoured NT Government investigator was an ex-police officer, we’ll call him ‘Soap Dodger’ to protect his identity, who conveniently, time after time, found the exact thing he was tasked to and which conveniently made him popular in Government Executive circles and then conveniently he kept getting more and more jobs because of that.
Employees who were ‘investigated’ by ‘Soap Dodger’ always found themselves disciplined and/or out of a job. Others were inexplicably exonerated if on the side of their bosses. Funny that.
The ‘appeal to authority’ logical fallacy plays in nicely in this example: his investigation findings must be right because he’s an ex-detective. **laughing emoji**
Darwin Gulag where long-term networked Gestapo NTG executives are promoted & protected for malevolent behaviour. Darwin will never be a gateway to Asia, as law & justice is orchestrated theatre then promoted by self-interested legacy media to manipulate community sentiment. Sheeples, remember COVID lies.
And he was sitting back on full pay while this investigation went on, sack him as of the day he went on leave and recover the tax payer dollars paid after that date. The clowns are running the circus.
Both the CLP and the ALP have skeletons that they are deeply worried about! From their perspective, the ICAC has been the most stunning success story!
Imagine, in the dodgiest jurisdiction of Australia, where you buy Government Tenders/Contracts with political donations and other services (does anyone need a new kitchen or new cabinetry in their house??) ICAC has found zero corruption!
Following on from Charlie’s question about the cost of the report and investigation anybody who thinks the retracted version of the report justifies dismissal or termination is kidding them selves.
The bigger question is what was offered and paid to secure his resignation to avoid future contract cases. Riches will not be able to comment due to standard CPE settlement non disclosure and no disparaging comments provisions.
The angel on Jim Jefferies' left shoulderon May 27, 2025 at 4:55 pm
Our household agrees with you 100% ‘Jobsworth’.
They should be embarrassed to publish that. He abolished the coffee club! Wow! Breach of employment instrument no.223 which clearly states: Thou Shalt Not Abolish Staff Coffee Clubs.
Pathetic.
While they’re paying a lawyer (how much did she alone cost by the way?) to help the useless staff – remind us all how many corrupt people did you identify in the last 3 years for all those millions and millions of dollars spent on you lot? – stop crying because they don’t have a coffee club anymore, they stay silent on the IEPS $60 million fraud investigation.
As Attorney Dummy likes to tell the media: “That’s our Government”.
Hypocrisy and Double Standards at OCPE. Compare the pair Extracts from Work Health Court Decision involving Andrew Kirkman
“Andrew Kirkman in his evidence before me made a number of concessions about his demeanour, manner of speech and behaviour during the recorded part of the meeting on 30 July 2021. This was not surprising given the content of the recording.
Mr Kirkman conceded in his evidence in chief that he had sworn on two occasions during the meeting but denied he was swearing at the Worker. He said: “I accept I could have been more professional in my language” – transcript 22 February 2024 at page 170.3.
As noted earlier in these reasons, the Worker was an A06 clerk in DIPL and Mr Kirkman was the CEO of DIPL. In cross examination Mr Kirkman agreed concerning the Worker that he was “very much significantly senior to her” and “that there’d be a fairly significant power imbalance between your roles”The recording demonstrates that Mr Kirkman repeatedly interrupted and spoke over the Worker during the recorded part of the meeting, and I so find.
On the basis of Mr Kirkman’s volume and tone of voice and interruptions of the Worker in the recording of the meeting, on the basis of the transcript of the recording, of the admissions made by Mr Kirkman to the Investigator Raelene Burke set out above, and of the admissions and concessions of Mr Kirkman set out above in his evidence before me, I am satisfied and I find that in the course of the recorded part of the meeting on 30 July 2021 Andrew Kirkman, the CEO of DIPL, behaved toward the Worker, an A06 clerk in his Department, in an aggressive, threatening, dismissive, insensitive and inappropriate manner.
55. On the basis of the recording and the transcript of that, I find that Mr Kirkman’s behaviour toward the Worker as identified in the previous paragraph was not an incidental or occasional feature of the recorded portion of the meeting. I find this behaviour largely pervaded the recorded portion of the meeting. ”
No Action taken by OCPE
Compare that to the contents of the Report circulated by the CPE on ex ICAC Commissioner Richards!!! Who among identified faults abolished the Coffee Club! Had a thing for pretty girls in the office and did not relate well to some male staff!
Disgraceful, biased and most likely defamatory and most likely in breach of termination arrangements. Certainly not a model of leadership or ethical behaviour. Hope Riches initiates proceedings!
Minister for Public Employment – in the interest of transparency and accountability, what is the itemised total cost to taxpayers to complete this investigation and report?
Charlie, have you met the new OCPE head, God knows where they found her?
I doubt the occupants of seats at OCPE, mainly made up of:
-unqualified bimbo’s,
-a qualified English Teacher,
-highly qualified PHD holding airhead with a unbelievable, eye wateringly embarrassing research thesis and
-NT-Police-College-destroying walking disaster
would have a clue about what you just asked for.
Dear Footrot
I did not criticise the CPE or her staff- there is no reason to do so. I trust with the benefit of hindsight you will withdraw the misogynistic reference to female staff in OCPE. I am trying to advance a simple proposition – why are Territorians governed in secret? Why can’t the Minister for Public Employment publish an itemised break up of costs incurred investigating and reporting on complaints against Riches in the public interest? She could do this today.
Best wishes
Charlie
This man was hired by people with a tonne to hide, namely NT Legend former CM Michael Gunner (who got investigated and cleared by ICAC),
NTPS head Jodie Ryan (whose bro is the legendary Andrew Kirkman).
What a fantastic quality hire. The whole fiasco sums up how the NT has been governed!!
And after all that, he is able to resign rather than be sacked. This is a pretty standard practice in the executive world where they are found in breach of the standards they are paid, significantly high sums, to uphold. They are allowed to simply resign, and not carry the stigma of being sacked is a miscarriage of justice. Too many executives and politicians get away with far too much.
First: we love the headline, it seems you’re on the punny train too. Good work NTI.
Second: while we welcome some form of publication, we have reservations for any ‘findings’ made in this way. We know many people who have been victims of NT Government self-labelled ‘substantiated’ findings in the past regardless of whether the investigation was conducted by a lawyer or not.
Some legal investigators are chosen because they might be government friendly. We’re not claiming this one is, just putting it out there that this happens more often than you all realise. Don’t be fooled simply by the lawyer-authority tag.
One famous favoured NT Government investigator was an ex-police officer, we’ll call him ‘Soap Dodger’ to protect his identity, who conveniently, time after time, found the exact thing he was tasked to and which conveniently made him popular in Government Executive circles and then conveniently he kept getting more and more jobs because of that.
Employees who were ‘investigated’ by ‘Soap Dodger’ always found themselves disciplined and/or out of a job. Others were inexplicably exonerated if on the side of their bosses. Funny that.
The ‘appeal to authority’ logical fallacy plays in nicely in this example: his investigation findings must be right because he’s an ex-detective. **laughing emoji**
Stay alert, people.
Darwin Gulag where long-term networked Gestapo NTG executives are promoted & protected for malevolent behaviour. Darwin will never be a gateway to Asia, as law & justice is orchestrated theatre then promoted by self-interested legacy media to manipulate community sentiment. Sheeples, remember COVID lies.
And he was sitting back on full pay while this investigation went on, sack him as of the day he went on leave and recover the tax payer dollars paid after that date.
The clowns are running the circus.
Both the CLP and the ALP have skeletons that they are deeply worried about!
From their perspective, the ICAC has been the most stunning success story!
Imagine, in the dodgiest jurisdiction of Australia, where you buy Government Tenders/Contracts with political donations and other services (does anyone need a new kitchen or new cabinetry in their house??) ICAC has found zero corruption!
Following on from Charlie’s question about the cost of the report and investigation anybody who thinks the retracted version of the report justifies dismissal or termination is kidding them selves.
The bigger question is what was offered and paid to secure his resignation to avoid future contract cases. Riches will not be able to comment due to standard CPE settlement non disclosure and no disparaging comments provisions.
Our household agrees with you 100% ‘Jobsworth’.
They should be embarrassed to publish that. He abolished the coffee club! Wow!
Breach of employment instrument no.223 which clearly states: Thou Shalt Not Abolish Staff Coffee Clubs.
Pathetic.
While they’re paying a lawyer (how much did she alone cost by the way?) to help the useless staff – remind us all how many corrupt people did you identify in the last 3 years for all those millions and millions of dollars spent on you lot? – stop crying because they don’t have a coffee club anymore, they stay silent on the IEPS $60 million fraud investigation.
As Attorney Dummy likes to tell the media: “That’s our Government”.
Sure is, Marie-Clare.
Hypocrisy and Double Standards at OCPE. Compare the pair
Extracts from Work Health Court Decision involving Andrew Kirkman
“Andrew Kirkman in his evidence before me made a number of concessions about his demeanour, manner of speech and behaviour during the recorded part of the meeting on 30 July 2021. This was not surprising given the content of the recording.
Mr Kirkman conceded in his evidence in chief that he had sworn on two occasions during the meeting but denied he was swearing at the Worker. He said: “I accept I could have been more professional in my language” – transcript 22 February 2024 at page 170.3.
As noted earlier in these reasons, the Worker was an A06 clerk in DIPL and Mr Kirkman was the CEO of DIPL. In cross examination Mr Kirkman agreed concerning the Worker that he was “very much significantly senior to her” and “that there’d be a fairly significant power imbalance between your roles”The recording demonstrates that Mr Kirkman repeatedly interrupted and spoke over the Worker during the recorded part of the meeting, and I so find.
On the basis of Mr Kirkman’s volume and tone of voice and interruptions of the Worker in the recording of the meeting, on the basis of the transcript of the recording, of the admissions made by Mr Kirkman to the Investigator Raelene Burke set out above, and of the admissions and concessions of Mr Kirkman set out above in his evidence before me, I am satisfied and I find that in the course of the recorded part of the meeting on 30 July 2021 Andrew Kirkman, the CEO of DIPL, behaved toward the Worker, an A06 clerk in his Department, in an aggressive, threatening, dismissive, insensitive and inappropriate manner.
55. On the basis of the recording and the transcript of that, I find that Mr Kirkman’s behaviour toward the Worker as identified in the previous paragraph was not an incidental or occasional feature of the recorded portion of the meeting. I find this behaviour largely pervaded the recorded portion of the meeting. ”
No Action taken by OCPE
Compare that to the contents of the Report circulated by the CPE on ex ICAC Commissioner Richards!!! Who among identified faults abolished the Coffee Club! Had a thing for pretty girls in the office and did not relate well to some male staff!
Disgraceful, biased and most likely defamatory and most likely in breach of termination arrangements. Certainly not a model of leadership or ethical behaviour. Hope Riches initiates proceedings!
CPE and OCPE next on the list!!!!