Dear Valued Supporters,
I have received a letter on behalf of the Hon Paul Fletcher MP yesterday on 19 February 2021.
I am sharing that with you. My brief comments are included. The following is just a cover letter to me.
Dear Mr Wagh
Please find attached correspondence on behalf of the Hon Paul Fletcher, Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts.
Please do not reply to this email. This address does not receive incoming emails.
Kind regards
Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications
infrastructure.gov.au / communications.gov.au /
@CommsAu / @infra_regional
arts.gov.au / @artsculturegov
I would like to acknowledge the traditional custodians of this land on which we meet, work and live. I recognise and respect their continuing connection to the land, waters and communities. I pay my respect to Elders past and present and to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Is
UNCLASSIFIED
The following letter was attached as a PDF document to the above cover letter. It appears that the Minister responsible for Australia Post, the Hon Paul Fletcher MP, had no choice left than to get something out of his office without any commitment to hold Australia Post officials to account including the former three Managing Directors of Australia Post. Mr Graeme T. John was the Managing Director. Ms Holgate and Mr Fahour were also the Group CEO’s in addition to the Managing Directors of Australia Post. The signatory of this letter to me is Ms Rebecca Rush, Assistant Secretary, Post and ACMA Branch.
The address from where this email came from was:
Dispatching <dispatching@communications.gov.au>
Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications - Correspondence reply - MC21-013486 [SEC=UNCLASSIFIED]
The date is Fri 19/02/2021 2:02 PM. (This was yesterday)
The following letter has reference to many dates of my correspondence sent via email. These dates are just a small number of my letters to Mr Fletcher. Ms Rush failed to mention many other dates of my letters to Mr Fletcher. My emails are basically my updates of the petition sent to many elected representatives on an ongoing basis with the cover letters.
There is absolutely no mention anywhere about my petition and all the updates in this acknowledgement from Ms Rebecca Rush despite the petition updates were part of the emails that she has mentioned as received by them.
There is no mention anywhere that the predecessor of Mr Fletcher- the Hon Mitch Fifield failed to respond to any of my letters during the entire period he was the Minister for Communications. The Honourable Mitch Fifield is Australia’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations taking up his posting in New York in October 2019.
His abrupt resignation, despite his Liberal Party is in the government, was not investigated.
In his valedictory speech that went on for around 23 minutes he did not say even one word about Australia Post despite being Minister responsible for Australia Post. Has anyone noticed that omission? He was given this Portfolio by the former PM the Hon Malcolm Turnbull after removing Mr Abbott from the office of the PM with the help of Mr Fifield and becoming the PM himself. Mr Turnbull was the Minister for Communications under Mr Abbott’s leadership. Mr Turnbull’s failure to hold Australia Post to account in these matters is extensively documented.
Mr Rodney Boys has also failed to respond to my many letters and documents. After the resignation of Ms Holgate Mr Boys has continued to follow the same path of silence to allegedly cover up the truth.
The stand-alone Department of Communications was merged with Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development.
The complete letter signed by Ms Rebecca Rush on behalf of the Hon Paul Fletcher MP is below:
Dear Mr Wagh
Thank you for your emails of 8 November, 15 November, 29 November, 6 December, 27 December, 30 December 2020, 2 January, 16 January and 9 February 2021, originally directed to a number of members of Parliament concerning Australia Post. Your correspondence has been referred to the Hon Paul Fletcher MP, Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts and I am responding on his behalf. I apologise for the delay in replying.
Australia Post’s day to day operations are the responsibility of its board and management. By law, it is legally and financially separate from the Australian Government.
On 22 October 2020, the Australian Government became aware that the former Australia Post Chief Executive Officer (CEO) awarded four Cartier watches to senior managers in 2018.
An investigation into those events is now complete and the Investigation Report was released on 22 January 2021. The Investigation Report made 12 findings and is available on the Department’s website at www.communications.gov.au/auspostInvestigation
The Investigation Report found that the purchase of the Cartier watches was inconsistent with the obligation imposed by the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Act 2013 relating to the proper use and management of public resources and was inconsistent with public expectations.
The Government expects all government entities, including Australia Post, to act ethically and expend public money carefully. Lessons learned from the Investigation will be applied so that the actions of Australia Post and other government business enterprises comply with their legislative obligations, reflect community expectations and have appropriate internal systems in place in their use of public resources.
On 2 November 2020, Ms Holgate resigned from her role as Australia Post’s Managing Director and Group CEO. This decision by Ms Holgate did not impact the investigation, which also considered the actions of the Australia Post Board.
The Board has agreed that Mr Rodney Boys, Australia Post’s Chief Financial Officer, act in the role of CEO. Mr Boys and the rest of the executive team remain committed to delivering for its customers and the community.
You may be interested to know that the Government is establishing a Commonwealth Integrity Commission (CIC). The first phases of the government’s plan for a CIC is already underway. The Australian Commission for Law Enforcement Integrity’s (ACLEI) jurisdiction will be expanded from 1 January 2021 to cover four new agencies, and additional funding and staff were allocated to ACLEI in the 2020-21 Budget to undertake those functions. The second phase will be the establishment of the CIC, which will be established as an independent statutory agency led by the Integrity Commissioner, and assisted by the Law Enforcement Integrity Commissioner and the Public Sector Integrity Commissioner. The CIC will subsume the ACLEI and cover the remainder of the public sector.
Further information on the CIC is available at www.ag.gov.au/integrity/publications/ commonwealth-integrity-commission-fact-sheet. The Attorney-General’s Department can be contacted via www.ag.gov.au/about-us/connect-us/contact-us or by calling 02 6141 6666.
Thank you for taking the time to write and I hope you find this information useful.
Yours sincerely
(Signed by Ms Rush)
Rebecca Rush
Assistant Secretary
Post and ACMA Branch
19 February 2021
This was the end of that letter.
Dear Supporters,
What has suddenly happened? Why there is a response without any mention of my allegations of corruption and cover ups by Australia Post officials? There is no mention of any remedies to resolve this matter, no mention that this matter will be raised in the parliament. No mention of anyone that will face parliamentary enquiry.
This is a letter without much substance on behalf of the Minister Fletcher.
Is this action of suddenly waking up to send me a response to my many letters together a result of my call to Mr John Laws on 2SM Radio on 10 February 2021? During that call I mentioned that Communications Ministers did not respond to my letters. No one will tell the truth behind this response at least at this point in time is my view. This “lacking in substance” response from the Department that is allegedly protecting Australia Post officials from a long time is worth investigating.
There is no mention anywhere that this matter is ongoing for over 14 and a half years and there are no questions directed at Mr Rodney Boys at all.
The government had great concerns about the $19950 spent on Cartier watches. There is no indication about the money spent over 14 and a half years for covering up corruption and crimes in this matter.
Numerous Australia Post officials have breached numerous rules, ethical standards, laws, corporate governance obligations and reporting of crimes obligations. They engaged in supply of fabricated documents, tampering of records, hiding my letter with the cheque inside and the Minister responsible is not even ready to mention anything about what actions will be taken on this documented corruption and crimes cover ups.
Does this mean that like Mr Graeme T. John, Mr Fahour and Ms Holgate Mr Boys will be protected by Minister Fletcher by following the path of his predecessors of not questioning anyone in Australia Post on this unresolved matter?
Why they are so much concerned about the Cartier watches given as gifts and then ignoring corruption and crimes cover ups initiated by Australia Post officials? Mr Boys is not telling me the amount spent by Australia Post to cover up this matter.
Why the people of this nation are kept in the dark by the Shareholder Ministers about Australia Post initiated cover ups? Australia Post officials’ corrupt conduct, dishonesty, unethical, unfair, unreasonable and unlawful conduct are not raised in the parliament by anyone. Why?
Why is this matter not resolved from June 2006? Who are the criminals? Are the CEO’s of Australia Post above the law?
What is the benefit of successive governments in protecting Australia Post officials?
What has my family done to be treated in this way? Why is the DEMOCRACY in our country getting destroyed? Who benefits from such destruction?
How many ordinary people will spend 14 and a half years to get their identity theft addressed?
Dear Supporters, this letter on behalf of the Minister Fletcher by Ms Rebecca Rush is a good example that they will keep protecting the wrongdoers is my view.
Please share this letter written on behalf of the Minister for Communications the Hon Paul Fletcher MP to me with as many others as possible. We, together, can make a change. That change can be achieved by holding our elected representatives to account for NOT doing their jobs for which they get paid for and also elected for.
The cover ups have to end. The TRUTH must be revealed. Criminals must face the full force of the law. Those who participated in the cover ups also must face full force of the law.
If NOBODY IS ABOVE THE LAW then why many people are still enjoying freedom and protection?
Not even a single ELECTED REPRESENTATIVE is ready to give me a VOICE. Why?
This letter from Ms Rebecca Rush on behalf of Minister Fletcher mentions CIC-Commonwealth Integrity Commission. When the corruption and cover ups are before the whole world why they need to wait for CIC?
Where is the honesty, integrity and values? Where is the justice?
The fight for justice will NEVER STOP. Please help. Please understand this brush off letter and then say ENOUGH is ENOUGH.
My petition is now signed and supported by 24,641 people from every corner of Australia. It is marching towards 25.000 supporters. Please help me to reach that milestone in just a few days’ time.
Dear Supporters, the people in the Parliament House from every side of the politics are silent on the corruption and crimes cover ups in this matter over many years. This silence must be questioned with one voice.
If the corruption fighters, whistle-blowers and the people with the concerns of declining standards of democracy in our country are not heard and not given the voice what will happen to our democracy?
Please help and support us. Please share this update. Please send this petition and updates to your own elected representatives and ask them why they are silent.
Please ask questions to my Local Federal Member of Parliament the Hon Matt Thistlethwaite MP about his reluctance to raise this matter in the Parliament. What is he afraid of? Who is controlling him? His email is 'Matt.Thistlethwaite.MP@aph.gov.au' His phone number is
(02) 93496007 in Sydney and in the Parliament House (02) 62774840
This is a Public Interest matter and must be addressed.
Please do not hesitate to ask me any questions about this update. I will try to answer all the reasonable questions.
Thank you all for your ongoing support.