IF the Dickson deal was in NSW it would go to ICAC, said former NSW Auditor-General Tony Harris on ABC Radio this morning, February 23, after the release of Thursday’s audit report on the Tender for the sale of Block 30 (formerly Block 20) Section 34 Dickson.
Mr Harris said if he was in NSW and this came before him, he would have send if off to the Independent Commission Against Corruption.
“I do have very serious concerns … if there were no wrongdoings involved, and that would have been hard for the Auditor-General to determine, then the level of incompetence attached to it is breathtaking,” he said.
“The government has to explain which of the two that it wants to admit to.
“It would have been an obligation under the Act, any suspicion of wrongdoing or corruption would have to be referred to the ICAC, the trouble in the ACT is we don’t have an ICAC at the moment.”
Opposition Leader Alistair Coe has similar beliefs on the deal and said it’s absolutely scandalous that $2.4 million has gone from taxpayers to the Labor movement.
“It’s a merry-go-round of money between the Labor government and Labor mates,” he said.
“This extraordinarily dodgy deal shows just how deep the cultural problems in the ACT government run.
“Like many other land deals under the Chief Minister Andrew Barr’s watch, this should be sent to an ACT ICAC when it is set up.”
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