EDITORIAL: Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro’s response to the ICAC’s findings that a “senior public officer” engaged in improper conduct is now bordering on what the ICAC’s delegate found the public officer engaged in, namely “negligence and incompetence”.
The Chief Minister’s refusal to take swift and decisive action on the public officer is a major failure of leadership and shows the old pattern we came to know all too well with the previous Labor government and their chief ministers’ refusals to address integrity issues when they presented themselves.
It’s killing the Northern Territory.
The need to maintain the public’s trust, particularly in the specific role the “public officer” holds is paramount, which Ms Finocchiaro does not seem to care about, downplaying the improper conduct on radio this morning as “clearly about education” of hiring processes.
It isn’t.
The person involved is in a senior role that demands the public’s trust. The fact he has not yet come out to accept responsibility, despite urgings from this masthead, is even more baffling and shows a coward of the highest order.
The ICAC found the public officer, who heads a major government agency, sat on a hiring panel for another senior position early last year while being a referee for his preferred candidate, who was a close friend, and that he provided that friend with a copy of his successful job application without informing others. His actions resulted in a “substantial detriment to the public interest and was also an inappropriate use of public resources”.
The Chief Minister knows who it is and has outright refused to take action against him and by failing to do that, has failed the public in her first real test as leader.
As we reported when we first broke the story on Sunday, we believe the public has a right to know who the subject of the investigation is, given the importance of the role, and we are currently reviewing our position and legal options.
The Chief Minister could come out at any moment – and should have three days ago – to inform the public of who it is and what is being done. She has chosen not to do that, instead covering up the conduct.
Changes to the ICAC Act brought in last year have also hindered the public’s right to know.
What we are witnessing here is what the public servants and politicians all secretly wanted in the amendments to the ICAC Act: that nobody can be publicly named for improper conduct no matter how serious and with no regard given to the position they hold.
The Chief Minister not only approved of the changes to the ICAC Act to protect incompetence and misconduct, she went ahead and appointed the man who proposed the changes to the Act, Greg Shanahan, as the acting Independent Commissioner Against Corruption.
Ms Finocchiaro meanwhile is using the ICAC Act amendments to play games with Territorians, claiming again on Monday morning to have written to the head public servant and the Public Employment Commissioner to inquire about “processes” around “integrity mechanisms” to ensure they’re “working properly” and explore whether she can “strengthen them” to work better.
This is an outright abrogation of her responsibilities as the Chief Minister and an elected Member of the NT Parliament to uphold the public’s trust and to foster accountability. She needs to show the public she will take action on public officials who break the rules and misuse public resources.
As a former CLP minister once said about the position in question, “the integrity of the [role] must be beyond reproach” and action taken when issues arise “to maintain public confidence” in the role.
The ICAC found this person engaged in improper conduct, amounting to “negligence and incompetence” and a misuse of public resources. He has no business holding the office he currently holds after breaching the public’s trust.
If she continues to bury her head in the sand and cover-up the actions of the public officer, the Chief Minister is in an office she no longer has any business holding.
The most satisfying and honest action would be to hold this person to the same standard that the lowest employee is held. Clearly thus individual is not new to government processes and it is highly likely this is not his first time defrauding the recruitment system in favour his mates.
It is evident that once you break through to the executive level, you are held to a lesser standard, as long as you are useful the the sitting ruling class. I guarantee this is not the first questionable hiring decision with some recent decisions very prominent in mind.
Experience, qualifications, achievements mean nothing if you haven’t bended thine knee. If private business was run like government, we would all be unemployed. We need a revolution to bring about change. I watch DOGE with envious eyes.
This is merely a smear, no laws were broken, but ICAC has wasted another $6,000,000
Lia is a DUD!
A song by John Lennon – Here We Go Again
=====================
Here we go again
Here we go again and again
Wond’rin’ how it all began
Wond’rin’ will it ever end
Round and round we go
Where it’s going, nobody knows
Though I know we’ve been this place before
Someone keeps on moving the door
Here we go agai-ai-ai-ain
Here we go agai-ain
Here we go agai-ai-ai-ain
Here we go agai-ain
So I say hello again
And nobody gives a damn
And nobody wants to hold your hand
Ev’ryone is an also-ran
Round and round we go
Where it’s going, nobody knows
Though I know we’ve seen this place before
Someone keeps on moving the door
Here we go agai-ai-ai-ain
Here we go agai-ain
Here we go agai-ai-ai-ain
Here we go agai-ain
Good editorial. Interesting talk around the town. People not happy with the corruption and nepotism and turning a blind eye to it. THey are quickly losing support with good people. MLA facebook pages not getting the ‘likes’ of not long ago. The honeymoon is definately over.
Huge fail. Disappointing. And damaging to the CLP politically. A one term government again?
I recall some years ago when a Deputy CE rigged a recruitment process, as chair of the selection panel, and convinced the CE to accept a late application of the deputies spouse. The CE agreed and guess what? The spouse got the job.
Well, then someone complained to the Public Employment Commissioner and the appointment was cancelled, albeit, the spouse was moved to another role in government.
It was that simple.
Problem with that one is that the Deputy, other senior public officers and the CE then set about destroying the careers and reputations of the brave whistleblowers. Meanwhile, the Deputy, the CE and other senior public officers involved went on to bigger and better things.
After months of bullying and gaslighting, the whisleblowers eventually left and moved thier families interstate to get away from the reprisal actions. Noting, the Commissioner for Public Employment and the Commissioner for Public Interest Disclosures (now Acting Ombudsman) did nothing to protect the honest staff who stood tall and spoke up against the improper conduct and incompetence.
For those who may be curious, the job was for a Senior Investigator with the Ombudsman’s Office so if that appointment was set aside then why can’t the one subject to this article be dealt with the same way? Is it because it is such a common occurrence that to intervene once means hundreds of appointments will be similarly treated?
Keep up the good work NT Independent – maintain the rage..
Paleease!!…. thats a boring Tuesday morning!!
Please visit Territory Families Housing and Communities under the stewardship of accomplished executive leader Emma White, where on your first day at work your introduced to someone’s Mum, Sister and cousins in the same business unit.
After a week you will link all the friends that ushered their mates into jobs.
The Families in Territory Families does not indicate they look after external families in crisis, they are referring to their own families inhouse. So at least the Departmental name is accurate.
Please see Exhibit A:Territory Families Housing and Communities Power House building, The Mall.
In the Northern Territory Public Service the Recruitment and Selection Policy –
a. The words “interview panel” have been changed to “selection panel” because interviews are not mandatory in the Northern Territory Public Service. Selections to an employment position can be made without conducting an interview by the selection panel.
b. Job applications in the Northern Territory Public Service will be limited to a one-page summary only with an attached resume including contact details for relevant referees irrespective and if a position description has to up ten selection criteria that must be addressed in writing.
c. Selection panel members and delegates of the agency will be impartial, declare and avoid conflicts of interest and have a clear understanding of the level, duties and requirements of the employment role.
d. Selection panels will use eRecruit and standardised NT Public Service selection report templates.