Grech, journos and Liberals: leaks that run deep
|
If reports about Godwin Grech having been a long-term leaker to the Coalition were correct — and no charges of that nature have been formally laid or publically discussed — he could face up to two years’ imprisonment under s.70 of the Crimes Act, not to mention whatever may arise from s.144 of the Commonwealth Criminal Code relating to impersonating a Commonwealth official, if he was involved in concocting the forged Charlton email. But Grech would be, if reports are correct, no ordinary leaker. It is one thing to leak against a Government with whom one disagrees ideologically. But to leak to a Government, especially a Government that had such tight control of the Public Service as John Howard’s, suggests something more than mere ideological malice. His apparent tendency to copy even the Secretary of his own Department in on perfectly anodyne emails suggests an urge to communicate bordering on the eccentric. Grech is also understood to have been a multi-year resident at Canberra’s Macquarie Hostel, a cheap-and-cheerful … well, cheap, facility (since demolished and replaced with an upmarket hotel), for school groups and single men, although I spotted Andrew Peacock’s Gucci luggage there the one time I was a guest in the early nineties. The clear picture seems to be of a somewhat eccentric, workaholic conservative loner who was nevertheless well-regarded by colleagues, and evidently considered trustworthy and competent enough to implement a major Government initiative. But Chris Uhlman’s revelations last night confirmed the suspicions about yesterday that in Grech the Government may have found the Treasury source that leaked details about Fuelwatch and the alleged division between the RBA and Treasury over the banking guarantee. You’ll recall the RBA-Treasury bank guarantee story. The Australian claimed that the Government had ignored RBA advice against the guarantee before announcing the scheme. The Opposition then launched a complementary attack on both Ken Henry and the Government in Question Time. But The Australian’s story was completely W-R-O-N-G, with both Ken Henry and Glenn Stevens specifically denying any division. Even The Oz backtracked on its claim that the RBA had advised against the guarantee before the announcement. A pattern involving coordinated News Ltd and Opposition claims against the Government that turn out to be false seems to be emerging. It is clear from Eric Abetz’s initial “grilling” of Grech at Estimates on 4 June that this entire affair would not have kicked off if it were not for the Opposition’s possession or knowledge of a forged communication between Charlton and Grech prior to that point. Nevertheless, leaking is one of the most serious allegations that can be made against a public servant, particularly at the Commonwealth level, and potentially professionally crippling, quite apart from any legal consequences. Even when the Howard Government was at its most extreme, leaking by its predominantly ALP-inclined bureaucrats in Canberra was relatively rare, because the vast majority of public servants take their professional obligations seriously. The Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, in particular, tries to encourage a very strong culture against leaking of lax security of any kind. The fact that Grech was one of theirs for a time will be painful for a Department that prides itself on its secure coordination of the Commonwealth’s key processes. Ironically, Grech was also briefly a Treasury representative on the Howard Government’s Iraq taskforce operating from within Foreign Affairs and which handled the AWB scandal — on which a certain then-Opposition frontbencher made his bones, with some help from leaks. This is not to suggest, however, that Grech was involved in anything untoward there. Grech evidently fooled his managers very well. He would have required a Secret or more likely Top Secret clearance, which is periodically renewed, normally every five years, if departments maintain their records properly (some don’t). Any suspicions about his liking for communication would have been reported as part of that process, but evidently none were, or weren’t sufficient to prevent him continuing to be cleared. As for Malcolm Turnbull and any other Coalition beneficiaries of leaking, there are no legal consequences for receiving material from public servants. Only if the material is secret or has national security implications, and the recipient keeps it or passes it on themselves having initially received it, is it an offence. Turnbull’s possible encouragement of Grech to continue to repeatedly break the law, however, suggests Turnbull isn’t averse to using whatever human resources are at his disposal, regardless of the human cost. Fortunately, Turnbull will be able to rely on a highly-professional and generally leak-averse public service should he ever become Prime Minister, regardless of his own record in Opposition. |
|
|
|
31 Comments
“As for Malcolm Turnbull and any other Coalition beneficiaries of leaking, there are no legal consequences for receiving material from public servants.
…
Turnbull’s possible encouragement of Grech to continue to repeatedly break the law, however, suggests Turnbull isn’t averse to using whatever human resources are at his disposal, regardless of the human cost.”
Bernard I’m not sure you’re correct here. If one or more members of the Opposition have in fact made an agreement with Grech relating to the leaking of materials, then they theoretically could be liable for conspiracy to commit the offences you mention. If Turnbull has encouraged Grech to break the law, then “Utegate” has a long way to go. My guess is that this is why the AFP (and no doubt the media) is probing the history & nature of the relationship between Grech and the Opposition…
But, if it could be proved, that Malcolm Turnbull and Godwin Grich(and possibly others? Eric Abetz etc) allegedly, used said email to blacken the reputation or bring about the sacking?resignation of the PM or Treasurer, wouldn’t that take the non-criminal act of passing on an email more serious? I think so, or it should! If anyone would vote for Turnbull after this lot, or Abbott, Hockey and Abetz either for that matter, they’re just damned stupid! Ruddick’s taking the high moral ground in the Parliament on Monday would’ve been comical if not for his past record. The word ‘sickening’ springs to mind. I wonder how he’ll vote over the Migration Bill? Ahem? Go against the party or stick to his inhumane ideology!
I also recall the allegations re John Howard and his mate Dick?? who has the Manildra plant (Shoalhaven area)that manufactures ethanol. This man was a known heavy contributor to the Liberal Party; a personal friend of Howard’s, and the allegation was, that he got favourable treatment re some contract or other over someone else. It was worth heaps of money as I recall. Howard ‘wormed’ his way out of that one too! Fancy that? The ‘deal’ went through!
The media? Pretty quiet from memory. Now why doesn’t that surprise me either?
It’s abundantly clear to me that the campaign by the opposition against Kevin Rudd initially, and then Wayne Swan, has been carefully orchestrated since early June. As pointed out by Possum Comitatus, the opposition’s first move was to ensure Rudd, on two occasions, denied in Parliament that he had made any representations on behalf of the car dealer, Grant. This elevated what is an incredibly trivial matter at worst, i.e. helping a mate a tad more than anyone else, to the capital offence of misleading Parliament. They would only go to such lengths to elicit the denial from Rudd, if they thought they had something on him, i.e. the supposedly incriminating email. There can be little doubt the information on the email’s existence came from Grech, I suspect after considerable arm twisting from the opposition for anything about OzCar that might incriminate Rudd. That Grech is a serial leaker to the opposition destroys the credibility of his evidence to the Senate Inquiry (what a performance by both Grech and Abetz, each knowing exactly what the other wanted from the exchange - Oscar-winning stuff, IMHO), as does his likely authorship of the fake email. Anyone out to get the Government in Grech’s position could easily lay a paper trail that makes the government look bad, e.g. sending faxes to Swan’s home address. It is clear to me that the relationship between Grech and the opposition must be fully exposed.
Just invoke Godwin’s Law now and finish it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin's_law
Heard on 3AW this morning, an interview with Joe Hockey. The interviewer was a replacement for Neil Mitchell. Hockey said something like..’After all Rudd had access to the same information (as Turnbull) Is this of any significance?
It is to be hoped Malcolm Turnbull is judged by the Australian electorate to be soiled and sordid beyond belief. He is laughing and glorying in every minute of his chicanery. What a legacy John Howard left his Party, a chalice so putrid with poison that it burns the hand of the victim who holds it and kills the victims who drink of it.
At the most reductive level none of this makes any sense if you apply the cui bono test so maybe it should not be looked at using logic as one’s guide. For me the most striking aspect of Utegate (so far) is the figure of Godwin Grech – about whom the word ‘eccentric’ keeps being used. Grech strikes me as a Walter Mitty type (but imagined by Kafka rather than Thurber), intelligent but socially inept and isolated, keen to be (secretly) at the centre of momentous happenings but desperately uncomfortable in the spotlight, passing on information to those who make him feel important and influential and, in the end, so easily manipulated and exploited by those who have no genuine interest in or care for him. Rather than eccentricity this feels more like mental illness.
PS
Wouldn’t Turnbull look great in a SS uniform. He’s got the flat back to his head and the puffed up stance of a short man. (I’m going on the movies I’ve seen and I’m not even trying to be horrid.)
Why wait for an unfavourable election result when you can torture a few people into the stage where they will say anything?
A bent reason to try to arse the elected government by the goons and thugs of the Howard régime led by a man who makes the aforementioned Howard look angelic.
Hey folks, that’s pretty nauseating stuff.
Colin well summed up. I have had no doubts since watching the ‘Holywood performance’
by the now condemned Mr Grech last Friday it was all just too good to be true. The head down, the snivelling, the gulps for air, the stammering, the oh I dont want to say this but I will attitude. And all the while Sen Abetz held out in front of him a piece of paper, which we now are certain contained the words, or part of, the false, disgraced leaked email. The contents of, according to Turnbull, the Opposition had no knowledge of. My upbringing prevents me from using the words I would like to. Suffice to say, Turnbull and Abetz have more to answer for than has been revealedso far. Abetz had the expression of a cat that has got the cream, from start to finish. He had the cream all right, in front of his face and lapped away gleefully.
I now have a feeling of great desire to see this mob get what they deserve. Not for bringing Grech crumbling down, he is the author of his own misfortune. But for the total lack of concern as to what would happen to n individual who has obviously been their lacky for years and can be discarded in an instant as if a bag of refuse.
Since Friday there has not been one word of concern expressed by Abetz or Turnbull for the state of mind or welfare of their stooge. Whatever Grech motives, once again, particularly in politics, the term ‘there is no honour among thieves’ is very applicable.
GG is very lucky that s70 (i) of the Crimes Act 1914 is so rarely used against leakers. in fact it’s hard to recall a single instance since …ummm.. the Rodent was caught in the rat trap of his own making.
godfreys like a bizzaro winston smith
@venise “Wouldn’t Turnbull look great in a SS uniform.”
venise, you’re scum and you need to be told…
Settle Joel, some of your contributions were not composed by the angels and saints.
If you had seen Turnbull in action this afternoon, carrying on like a spare part, yelling and demanding, voice level that would have done justice to a soprano hitting a HIGH C, demanding to speaking rights out of turn. You may not have been impressed either.The man is a bully, has only concern for himself, it has been on show all week and today he lost his cool. He will be called far worse before this affair is over, its not for the faint hearted. Remember this whole debate is all down to him and a couple of his associates. One has slunk into the shadows not heard from publicly since last Friday. Not a good look . Just how Turnbull handles himself will be all important to his ability to survive.
My dear Joel, I was merely indulging in a whimsical thought. In case you hadn’t noticed the man has got a very Germanic build. He’s a bully, 9/10 short men have a burning ambition to be thought of as tall, he has the typical flat-back to the head which so many Germans have, and he is so eaten alive with ambition he would quite literally murder someone, if he thought he could get away with it. I then added a Stormtrooper’s uniform and it looked apposite.
I trust you were equally distraught at reading Trevor Cooks comments on Godwin Grech in yesterday’s Crikey. Unless you happen to think being called, lonely, erratic, loose lipped, traitorous-without proof as yet, and every other regrettable adjective in the book is fun journalism. You will note that throughout the piece is the heavy implication that the man is an effing poofter.
That my friend Joel, is scum. Worse, it was bad journalism.
However, with your avatar being that of a homespun yokel, I dare say you thought it deleriously funny.
@Venise, thanks for your considered reply.
Shall we just waft over the important bits and get to my avatar?
It’s from http://www.objectiveministries.org/kidz/
It’s Mr Gruff the coffee drinking atheist ! (shock horror)
If Turnbull is a goat , I’ll be there. But I’ll donate $20 to your charity of choice if you can convince me Rudd is not something that crawled out from beneath a rock.
(only one bet taken, photo proof required)
Angela, I think your appraisal of Godwin Grech is spot on. I think he was happy to be a secret source of scuttlebutt for the libs, but they saw an opportunity to squeeze more out of him. He succumbed to the pressure and ended up way out of his comfort zone before the Senate Estimates Committee, as well as possibly crossing the line to criminality with involvement in the forged email.
OOOI !
How come Colin gets his comment approved before mine?
You scummy Labor bastards
I wonder if Mr Grech still endorses the words of our former PM John Howard. “Let me say public service is the greatest form of service that can come one’s way in life and I’ve had great privileges.” Strange words from a man who did his best to wreck what he loved so much. Once in office this stickler for old-fashioned values couldn’t wrest from the chains of tradition fast enough to silence voices of reason and shove through extreme policies. Out with the professional DNA of the APS and in with supporters who like Godwin Grech fell under security radars as the uncompromising found other careers. So just as John Howard discovered the frustrations of working within the confines of impartiality no doubt people such as Mr Grech with similar partisan sympathies were equally thwarted. But as John Howard and Malcolm Turnbull will tell you life for those upstairs is vastly more ‘privileged’ than those living in the basement.
Yes Joel exactly what Venise was saying about you Libs. Such nice people, you sound like the type that would be high up on Turnbulls dinner party guest list. Well there is one establishment you can bet your black soul on he will not be entertaining in, The Lodge.
You ask for all you get, bit like the odd ball Grech. Wonder what else the Feds found on his home PC, lot of bags and cases carried out of his spanish hacienda, not just your regular PC
I’d like to use this forum to express my disgust at Turnbull’s performance on the 7.30 Report tonight. He came on the program determined to project confidence and jovial bonhomie - ie he was determined to pretend that he had nothing to worry about.
He repeatedly refused to say anything at all about his relationship with John Grech other than pretending that he spoke to him in the same manner he would to any public servant. It became clear during the interview that Turnbull is a man who believes that the world can be made to conform to his needs. If he does not want to talk about Grech then nobody should ask him about Grech.
His refusal to say the smallest thing about this relationship leads one to the obvious conclusion that he has a lot to hide. He made it clear to O’Brien that he will do his utmost to frustrate attempts to shed light on the relationship, including non-cooperation with Federal Police enquiries.
He really has to go.
Cheers David, is on in half an hour out here in the wild west, where daylight saving has been sent to coventry, wanks liberal state govt no guts to just do it…will watch for first couple of mins but Turnbull like Hockey drives me nuts, have just bought a new slim line HD all the bits and pieces TV, thanks Kev…dont want to throw anything at it. That friggin Turnbull he is a liar and a user and a grhhhh, he will get caught, he still acts like nothing has happened the supercillious, stuck up, big noting penis features wanker
I’m controlling myself…I have watched the Leader of the Opposition on the 7-30 report, I had my kids remove any objects that could have damaged the screen…that smart arse, up himself, arrogant, smirking, rude wanker, who supposedly is the alternative PM ..God help us….I had no time for Howard but the feeling of disgust and almost loathing of Turnbull required a great sense of self control in my household. Fortunately I have a sensible loving wife and well adjusted kids….incidently my 15 yr old summed Turnbull up fairly well I thought. His reaction to that interview when Turnbull had his parting smart arse shot at O’Brien…hey dad is that dude for real, what a gay…teen talk I believe for a not very nice person. Couldn’t have put it better myself, with apologies to my real gay friends, they would know Zak wasn’t taking the mickey.
Turnbull bombed out on the 7.30 report tonight drawing on flippant patter to answer serious questions. Yes he’s hanlding the pressure poorly. But why I’ve no idea. He’s got a wealth of life and education experience all of which should steer him well through political muck the average pollie should handle like melting butter. What’s phasing you Malcolm? What is IT?
Do not think Christine I’m saying suck eggs and inferring anything rude to you…I am just a little bothered that you cannot see through Turnbulls attempts to appear cock sure and confident in body language, but what comes out of his mouth is a complete reflection of Turnbull the inner man. He is arrogant, rude and flippant and he does believe he has nothing to answer. He treated O’Brien like a second class interviewer and the reactions from Kerry were of a man not happy. I spent 35 years in radio and TV in New Zealand, Britain and Asia. Had an interview subject tried to put me down as Turnbull did tonight to O’Brien, I would have invited him to either answer the questions on the subjects I wished to discuss or take his mike off and leave, simple as that. The ABC or McQuarrie or Fairfax are not beholding to Turnbull or anyones whims and demands. They dont want to answer questions on a topic they know damn well is going to be asked, there perrogative and the studios to say ok goodbye, take your leave. In my experience, they either start acting like human beings or walk out tail between their legs. No way do they win, the viewing/listening public see to that. Its time our interviewers started acting like professionals and ran their own shows.
With due respect to the Hon Speaker of the House of Reps, a man I admire greatly, perhaps he should be running his show as well and not the Politicians. The latitude given to Abbott this week has been very kind. But the Speaker is a kind man, Abbott knows it.
@DJPL@David Sanderson @Chris, I am in total agreement with you. Complete and utter agreement. But I think I saw something there which I hope -for the sake of Australia-I was wrong to see. I saw madness. I’ve looked at his unlovely face often enough but tonight I couldn’t take myself away from those constantly blinking eyes. Of course, all his lies and cover-ups were revealed by those rapidly moving eyelids. But to me it was the actual eyes themselves. IMHO those eyes and the set of his jaw-undershot I know-but it wasn’t that. I swear I was looking at a man obsessed with himself to the point of lunacy. Also his parrot-like re-re-re-re runs of almost verbatim non-answers became obsessive.
I’m not someone who dismisses all of history’s evil-doers as being mad. However, I know what I saw. Will anyone who taped it please re-run it to see if I’m imagining it. There have been times when I hate a person so much that I see something which may not be there.
JoalI You have a problem which I don’t wish to be a part of. I looked at the website and noticed you make a point of your religion, and caring for children: You appear to be brandishing your beliefs hoping they will blind the opposition.
As a radical Atheist I’ve learned avoid professional piety and the people who wave it. It’s an exhausting and utterly fruitless pass-time to engage in conversation with amateur religionists.
Ah Venise as Im on 2 weeks leave I have no obligation to have a sensible early night, hence as the days here in the west have been the coldest I can recall in 10 years of residence, it is far easier to watch a good DVD with the boys, then send them off to sleep the sleep of the pure (i hope
while
woops hit the wrong button..as I was saying…I catch up with the emails and wait to see Lateline Hope Tony does better than last night with that fat bloated goon, obvious teller of porkies, damn I forget his name, insignificant tosser…I’ll get it…wait..head like a ping pong ball inserting clown…mardi gras…..damn…IVE GOT IT..
the Oliver Hardie of the Coalition minus the humour..Hockers, porkie Hockers, the I’m not here to talk about my relationship with that snivelling public servant, who didnt act the part he was instructed to do, the wimp…Hockers. Another Turnbull denial trick, as long as Malcolm doesn’t hear me, he is a bad tempered mean man you know. Hockers, it doesn’t matter how many whales the japs slaughter we can always float Hockers out to take their place until a few more are born. Who would know.
On a more serious note, ABC News have announced they now have a link between the public servant and the Coalition. It was a news flash I know no more.
yeah i fink i know what you mean i was a religionist once but even they could n’t find me a job…ok they did get me some work down at da local abbitwa but evthen dat whas no good….i mean da work was good but da money was lousy….yeah
i fink dat mr grech is having da last laugh here and i fink dat da truth of who he is really working for is not for virgin ears
not even for da initiated…not for no one
The revelations this morning of Turnbull and Abetz meeting with Grech to nut out their tactics prior to last Friday’s Estimates is nothing more than hi-jacking a parliamentary process. The wretched Abetz who curdled the blood of hardened bullies with his “good on you Godwin Grech, good on you” and the Opposition Leader should both be sent packing from the parliament.