EYE-BALL Opinion – Gillard must Stand Down – Latest revelations leave her with no authority to stay silent –

Latest ‘EYE-BALL Opinion’ Posts: – 15th nov – Hedley Thomas exploding on Gillard – Gillard has a case to answer …  – – 14th Nov – Gillard behaves like a Guilty Person – Asks for allegations to be made – – 14th Nov – The Australian Media – Lapdog’s at best – absolutely lost the plot on integrity, and their charter of responsibility – – 9th Nov – Open Letter to “The Independents” Re: – – Julia Gillard, Peter Slipper, and Craig Thompson, three MP’s who bring continued shame to our Parliament  – – 9th Nov – “Courage is an Angle” – the difference between a good day and a great day – – 8th Nov – RUDD fires a broadside aimed at GILLARD – done under a burka to hide its true intent – – 6th Nov – Gillard’s caucus and union support in revolt – her position becoming more untenable by the day – – 5th Nov – Referendum Discussion Part 1 – Compulsory Voting – Eye-Ball’s – “None of the Above Campaign” – – 4th Nov – Gillard Sunburnt – the flames of discontent begin to impact – – 2nd Nov – A Montage of AWU Scandal Reports – Gillard to become “Open-Season” – – 1st Nov – Education … A white Elephant – Politicising the future of young Australians – – 30th Oct – How do you awake a slumbering nation – Politicians – the most empty of vessels – – 30th Oct – Whistleblowers – love ‘em’ or hate ‘em’ – – 29th Oct – Polls pressure Abbott’s Leadership – Worst PM ever holds lead and flaunts her position – – 28th Oct – Eye-Ball’s “YUCK FILES -1” – ABC’s “Insiders” – Barry Cassidy – – To see more EYE-BALL ‘Opinion’ posts: click here …	Title: – Gillard Should Stand Down – – revelations leave her with no authority to stay silent  – | Author: EYE-BALL Opinion | 16th Nov 2012 |
	Yesterdays five (5) stories published in ‘The Australian’ gave Gillard a cold shiver of evidence mounting up against her.  Her defiance is futile and as this story opens her up and exposed her underbelly and her complicity – she must stand down. Further evidence obtained from the Ian Cambridge diary and reported by Hedley Thomas today. [see below.] Gillard cannot be saved – the ALP is at risk as a Political Party as long as Gillard holds onto the PM position.   The ALP caucus must act.  The Independents have not responded to the EYE-BALL ‘Open Letter’ sent last week and they as individuals do not see it as their role to oust Gillard.   The Independents claimed the high ground when the balance of power rested with them after Gillard formed a minority Government.  These Independents – Tony Windsor, Rob Oakeshott, and Andrew Wilkie carry the weight of the Nation and it is proving too much. Today’s Hedley Thomas story has upped the anti yet again – Rushed cheques and a quiet exit: how the AWU ‘covered up’ fraud | Author: Hedley Thomas | Date: Nov 16th, 2012 | Link to On-Line Story. | SENIOR union figures effectively covered up a fraud scandal revolving around the AWU and Bruce Wilson, then Julia Gillard’s boyfriend and legal client, according to the diaries of the union’s then national leader. In a September 15, 1995, diary entry, Australian Workers Union head Ian Cambridge described the concealment to a union official as “a bit like the Watergate scandal whereby the attempt to cover up the original crime was now far worse perhaps than the original crime, although given some recent revelations the original crimes were taking on an entirely new dimension as well”. His diary described how the cover-up was helped by a majority vote by the union’s national executive to pay large redundancy cheques of AWU members’ money to three men – Mr Wilson, his bagman Ralph Blewitt and their friend, Bill “the Greek” Telikostoglou – despite fresh and compelling evidence of their involvement in serious fraud. Law firm Slater & Gordon was involved in negotiating more than $100,000 in redundancy for the men. Ms Gillard worked at Slater & Gordon and acted for the AWU prior to her departure in September 1995 after she admitted helping to set up a “slush fund” for Mr Wilson. There is no evidence Ms Gillard had any knowledge of the redundancy payments. The Prime Minister has repeatedly and vehemently denied any wrongdoing, saying she knew nothing of the operations of the fund, which were used by Mr Wilson and Mr Blewitt to misappropriate union funds. ****** The Cambridge diary discloses a senior official telling Mr Cambridge “the whole thing was causing the union significant damage and that we would be best advised to try and sort it out by way of an executive meeting and try and deal with it, as he put it, ‘behind closed doors’ “. The diary highlights the last-minute attempts made by the AWU’s then national president, Bill Ludwig, and Mr Cambridge, to bring court proceedings to stop the redundancy payouts. Mr Ludwig and Mr Cambridge argued against the payments at the national executive but were outvoted. The redundancy payouts on August 17, 1995, came a fortnight after the discovery of secret accounts and another slush fund controlled by Mr Wilson in Victoria, and a fiery union meeting in which Mr Wilson was told by fellow official Bob Smith that he faced imprisonment. Documents show the payouts – $55,204 for Mr Wilson, $30,249 for Mr Blewitt and $16,218 for Mr Telikostoglou – occurred with cheques flown from Sydney to Melbourne to ensure the men could be quickly ushered out of the union. This stymied Mr Cambridge’s investigations into a sprawling AWU fraud, which grew on discovery in April 1996 of the other slush fund that Ms Gillard had helped set up for Mr Wilson. Mr Blewitt, who has admitted he was involved in fraud, said from Malaysia last night Mr Wilson told him to exit quickly with a redundancy payout. “He told me, ‘We are all out, we are gone, the game’s up – the best deal you can do is a redundancy package because they are going to try to get you if you stay’,” he said. ****** But the sudden allocation of redundancy to the men being ousted because of their suspected fraud meant the AWU could not afford to look after the families of deceased members who were supposed to receive “7 to 8 Bereavement Grants” cheques. The diary reveals Mr Cambridge’s anger that the redundancies meant “the Bereavement Grants would simply have to wait for six months or so”. The diary discloses how a fortnight before the payouts, Mr Wilson had been in a weak position with Mr Smith, then an official in Victoria who uncovered a number of secret bank accounts, warning that “unless he received Wilson’s resignation by 5pm the following day he was going to lay charges and take the matter to the police and the industrial commission”. Commonwealth Bank documents show that at the same time of the payouts, almost $80,000 Mr Wilson had secretly siphoned off from large companies, including Thiess and Woodside, was being returned to the companies. The companies, which paid the money into a separate slush fund that Mr Wilson controlled, the AWU Members Welfare Account No.1, were surprised they were being repaid. They believed they had made legitimate payments. The diary discloses a bank officer told Mr Cambridge the cheques to repay the companies were drawn at a meeting at the bank attended by union officials, as well as solicitors from Slater & Gordon and Maurice Blackburn. It discloses how Mr Cambridge’s investigations led him to conclude it was an attempt by Mr Wilson to return some of the money he had fraudulently obtained from companies. ****** The diary discloses that Joseph Ludwig, then an AWU employee (now a cabinet minister in the Gillard government) became involved after being contacted by a company, Fluor Daniel, that had paid $29,000 into the slush fund. The diary states that the company said it paid in the genuine belief it was for “membership contributions for workers on the job”, and that one of Mr Wilson’s cronies wanted to know if the company “would be prepared to say that the $29,000 that had been paid was a donation”. The company refused to adopt the plan to make it a “donation”. The company representative called Joseph Ludwig for advice, asking “what he should do in the event that he did receive a cheque for the $29,000 back”. ****** The diary discloses: “Joseph’s advice . . . was to photocopy the cheque and provide Bill Ludwig and Ian Cambridge with a copy of the cheque and of any correspondence which may be attached to it and then take that to the police. “Joseph said to me that often in construction jobs employers did pay for the union contributions but in all instances of which he was aware, there was always an issuing of tickets and the money being processed through the union’s records and accounts.” Mr Cambridge sought a royal commission into the corruption in the AWU. By late 1996, however, he was appointed to the Industrial Relations Court in NSW. ****** Hundreds of thousands of dollars that went through a different slush fund, the AWU Workplace Reform Association, set up in Western Australia after legal advice from Ms Gillard, went undetected by Victoria police, and it was unknown to WA police until late 1996 because neither Ms Gillard nor the law firm disclosed it. The Australian has asked Ms Gillard why neither she nor the firm alerted anyone in the AWU to the existence of the association there, which bore the name of the union. A spokesman for Ms Gillard said: “As The Australian is well aware, the Prime Minister has made clear on numerous occasions that she was not involved in any wrongdoing. I also note that, despite being repeatedly asked to do so, The Australian has been unable to substantiate any allegations of wrongdoing.” WOW … and WOW again … I know that Hedley Thomas has to play it neutral and not slant the facts to any particular outcome … but this site is an Opinion site and any opinion will and can be expressed. The above revelations are explosive … particular the highlighted entries including the WA accounts set up after legal advice from Gillard.  As a lawyer and holder of a practice certificate – Gillard is honour bound by the ethics as laid down by the Law Society of Victoria – those ethics were outlined in a previous post – linked here – and again produced in part below: ‘Law Admissions Consultative Committee1 Disclosure Guidelines for Applicants for Admission to the Legal Profession’ PURPOSES OF THESE GUIDELINES An applicant for admission is required to satisfy the Admitting Authority that the applicant is “currently of good fame and character”. 2 In all jurisdictions other than South Australia, the relevant Act also requires the Admitting Authority to consider whether the applicant is “a fit and proper person” for admission to the legal profession.3 Both these tests reflect the verarching requirements of the pre-existing common law. The purposes of these Guidelines are: to bring home to applicants that Admitting Authorities and Courts place a duty and onus squarely on each applicant to disclose to the Admitting Authority any matter that could influence the Admitting Authority’s decision about whether the applicant is ”currently of good fame and character” and “a fit and proper person”; and to remind applicants that failure to do so, if subsequently discovered, can have catastrophic consequences for an applicant. An applicant might either be refused admission, or struck off the roll, if the applicant has been admitted without making a full disclosure. There are many judicial explanations of what the phrase “fit and proper person” means in different contexts. For example: The requirement for admission to practice (sic) law that the applicant be a fit and proper person, means that the applicant must have the personal qualities of character which are necessary to discharge the important and grave responsibilities of being a barrister and solicitor. A legal practitioner, upon being admitted to practice, assumes duties to the courts, to fellow practitioners as well as to clients. At the heart of all of those duties is a commitment to honesty and, in those circumstances when it is required, to open candour and frankness, irrespective of self interest or embarrassment. ****** The entire administration of justice in any community which is governed by law depends upon the honest working of legal practitioners who can be relied upon to meet high standards of honesty and ethical behaviour. It is the legal practitioner who is effectively the daily minister and executor in the administration of justice when advising clients, acting for clients, certifying documents, and making presentations to courts, governments, other professionals, and so on. The level and extent of trust placed in what legal practitioners say or do is necessarily high and the need for honesty is self evident and essential. … continues The contents of the Cambridge diary being exposing under Hedley Thomas’s journalistic skill, have outlined the involvement and behaviour of Gillard acting as a solicitor.   The facts can be conclusive and unless Gillards responds directly to the questions being asked – her guilt and complicity is proved, be it on mostly circumstantial and heresy evidence at the moment. This gives cause and effect as to why Gillard no longer holds a licence to practice Law.   She is most likely under some type of threat of being disbarred should she try to renew her certificate. The most overriding question remains – how can a disgraced lawyer involved in a fraud – perpetrated whilst in a intimate relationship with the man she was advising how to structured and set up the legal entities and Bank Accounts to facilitate the fraud, advice and assistance that was crucial to the fraud happening – continue to serve as our Prime Minister? A contributor to this blog site made the following comments on a previous post – linked here – they are illuminating and worth the read … Comment Posted on Behalf of Hillbilly – The following information reveals Julia Gillard’s extraordinary view of right, wrong, ethics and her former role as a solicitor when she constantly recyles her one-size-fits-all excuse: “I did nothing wrong”! In any legal case, and no matter what their background, nothing anyone may say, write or do can alter the substantive facts. As ignorance of the law is never an acceptable excuse, two substantive facts publicly admitted by Gillard would appear to clearly show she made two deliberate, considered choices in full knowledge of her obligations as a solicitor and officer of the court. In doing so, she abandoned the ethics and integrity expected of her, by wilfully and recklessly contravening the Rules of Practice under which her Practising Certificate was granted, as well as her duties and obligations to one of her main clients, Victoria Branch AWU, her law firm Slater & Gordon and the equity partnership employing her. She admits that in late 1991, she began a long-term intimate relationship with an employee of her principal client, Victoria Branch AWU. She kept it secret from them and the equity partnership for as long as possible.It doesn’t matter whether her motivation was lust, love or just as a politically ambitious Left-wing lawyer seeing tremendous advantage in joining with a powerful Right-wing Union Official being groomed by P.M-maker Bill Ludwig for National President of the AWU. Any single motive or combination of motives, or no motive at all, does not alter the substantive fact! She admits giving legal advice and assistance to set up and incorporate an association, which on examination of all matters involved was unlawful. Further,she again kept it secret from her main client, and the equity partnership. It doesn’t matter what it was for, what Gillard thought it was for, or even whether it complied with the relevant W.A Act, which it didn’t) , it does not alter the substantive fact! Confirmation of these known substantive facts in the Wilson/Gillard/Blewitt/AWU Fraud case can be found in the two known documented investigations and statements from those who carried them out, Ian Cambridge and the equity partners of S & G, They can also be confirmed from what Gillard and others have stated on public record. In the period 1991 -1995, when the alleged fraudulent use of AWU moneys took place, Julia Eileen Gillard was a solicitor subject to the obligations imposed on her under the Legal Profession Practice Act 1958, when granted her Practising Certificate She was also a salaried partner of Slater & Gordon, which imposed fiduciary obligations to her employers, the equity partnership of the firm One of her principal clients was the Australian Workers Union, Victoria Branch. In providing any advice or other assistance relating to Union matters, she was bound to comply with AWU Rules, as well as acting ithin the Rules of Practice mentioned above. By her own admission, in late 1991 she began a long-term intimate relationship with an employee of the AWU, Bruce Wilson, a married man with two small children. In that moment, she wilfully and recklessly contravened the Rules of Practice by creating a conflict of interest for herself, her partners and her principal client Gillard immediately opened herself to the serious charge of misconduct, and because of the conflict of interest also placed her equity partners at risk in terms of professional indemnity. By her own admission, in early 1992 she provided advice and assistance to her then lover. Bruce Wilson. to set up and incorporate an association under the Associations Incorporation Act 1987 WA, This was not an industrial Act, but one put in place to assist community and sporting groups to have easier control and tracking of their finances. It had specific provisions designed to prevent Unions or the like from using it and also preventing any moneys involved being used for personal use or gain by signatories of any bank accounts subsequently opened… Despite knowing it was against all relevant Rules of her principal client the AWU and despite knowing it did not comply with the relevant Associations Act, Gillard drew up Rules for the proposed association. Whatever Gillard or anyone else thought or claimed were the aims of the association is irrelevant. The setting up and incorporation was unlawful and its sole purpose was to enable her lover Bruce Wilson to open and operate bank accounts. Analysis of the documents by a handwriting expert, reveal she personally wrote the name ‘Australian Workers Union – Workplace Reform Association’ on the required Applicant’s Certificate and the Application for Incorporation, despite knowing that in so doing she was again breaching the relevant Rules of the AWU and the Associations Incorporation Act. Somehow, she prevailed upon the W.A Corporate Affairs Commissioner to allow the registration and incorporation of the sham association that had previously been rejected. The contents of the AWUWRA file held in W.A have now mysteriously gone missing, Gillard created a file which she has referred to at various times as “the incorporation file” or the “the AWU Association” file but did not open it on the firm’s system. She kept it’s existence hidden from her employers, the equity partnership, and did not advise her principal client, Victoria Branch AWU of the existence of the AWUWRA. She only produced the file when forced to do so a few days before her final interview.in September 1995, when allegations were put to her following their internal investigation She has never offered a satisfactory explanation for any of these actions but it is pertinent to note that opening the file on the firm’s system would have meant exposing her unethical and arguably unlawful actions. Like the W.A file, this file has also mysteriously gone missing!! Ian Cambridge, former Joint National Secretary of the AWU from May 1994, carried out a detailed investigation into the many discrepancies in AWU finances he uncovered and in Paragraph 11 of his 19/11/96 Affidavit, sets out in detail the reasons why the setting up and incorporation of the association was unlawful. He also tracked the source and disbursement of monies and established the subsequent misuse of funds meant for use of the AWU, out of the two initial bank accounts Gillard had enabled her boy friend to open at the CBA in W.A., AWUWRA Inc Cash Management at call A/c No. 6005 1000 2590 and AWUWRA Inc. Cheque A/c.No.6000 1000 2582.. Over $540,000 of monies paid to the AWU and meant to be used for designated Union activities, were identified by Ian Cambridge as being deposited into these two accounts and then being improperly used by Bruce Wilson and his AWU accomplice Ralph Blewitt. The source of the money was mainly from the Building Construction Industry Training Fund (BCITF) that had been set up by the WA Government in 1990, funded by taxpayers plus levied contributions from some companies. Gillard’s lover, Most of the deposited money had been onpaid to the AWUWRA by Thiess Contractors which was managed by Wilson’s brother-in-law, Joe Trio. Bruce. Wilson had been involved in the setting up and implementation of the BCITF. The first major withdrawal from the Bank Account designated AWUWRA Inc.C’wealthBA Cheque A/c no.6005 1000 2582 was $25,000, of which Ian Cambridge believes $23,000 was used by Wilson as a deposit associated with the purchase at auction on 13th February 1993, of a property at 85 Kerr St., Fitzroy, Melbourne, It was allegedly purchased in a private capacity for Ralph Blewitt by Bruce Wilson, acting under the Power of Attorney of Ralph Blewitt.Gillard and Wilson attended the auction together, with another S & G representative..It was all handled through Gillard’s firm Slater & Gordon and the conveyancing done or supervised by Gillard. A $150,000 mortgage loan was provided to Blewitt though the property division of Slater & Gordon. An AWUWRA Inc Cheque for $67,722-30 was written out to Slater & Gordon 18/3/93 from the same a/c, countersigned by Bruce Wilson and Ralph Blewitt and appears to have been electronically transferred from W.A into S & G where it was deposited in their Trust A/c The Power of Attorney was drawn up by Julia Gillard. It has a typed in date 4th February 1993 and Gillard has signed as witness to the signing by Ralph Blewitt. However, he has recently claimed that the PoA was brought to him in Perth WA by Bruce Wilson a couple of days after the auction and he signed on about 15th March. Julia Gillard was not present. The property deal is still shrouded in some mystery but Ian Cambridge summed it up in para 18.2 of his affidavit as follows:- I am unable to understand how Slater & Gordon, who were then acting for the Victoria Branch of the Union, could have permitted the use of funds which were obviously taken from the Union, in the purchase of private property of this nature, without seeking or obtaining proper authority from the Union for such use of funds and without recording the interest of the Union on the title of the property. Summing up so far, Gillard made two deliberate choices (outlined at the beginning of this post), which placed her in breach of many rules, duties and obligations as a solicitor. There is much, much more still to come which I’ll expand on in later posts if you wish!! I’m also happy to answer any queries. I’ve jst checked Michael Smith’s site and by sheer coincidence, he has posted on the same topic today and revealed more telling documents. i.e., That Wilson already had a slush cum re-election fund in an ordinary Bank A/c! See: http://www.michaelsmithnews.com/2012/11/ian-cambridges-legacy-of-honesty-and-standing-up-for-the-workers.html Ian Cambridge Speech to QLD Delegates: http://michaelsmithnews.typepad.com/files/qlddelegatesjan96-1.pdf Very interesting to see the extent of corruption and the ongoing coverup in the AWU, which Ian Cambridge did his best to expose.That coverup is also being used to “protect” Julia Gillard and other ex-Union Members of Parliament. Cheers to all H/B The longer Gillard remains as our PM – the more damaging the fallout.   This is a crisis the equal or even of higher billing that the Kerr/Whitlam overthrow on the 11th Nov 1975. Millions of ALP supporters have deserted the ALP under Gillard’s leadership – they remain on the fence and just ‘pissed off’ at the caucus support for an obvious ‘crook’ with a past that most ALP ‘MP’s knew about, yet still elevated her to the Prime Minister position. Under that understanding – all of those who supported Gillard in her over throw of Rudd in June 2010, and again voted for Gillard in Mar 2012 – you are responsible by association and equally not fit to grace the chamber of our Parliament.  By supporting Gillard you support and own her past deeds.   You have the right to question her and demand she address the issues and explain her complicity in the fraud and assist all police enquiries – and in that scenario – Gillard must stand aside … And this also goes to RUDD who was aware of the Gillard past and yet he still made her his Deputy PM – all to placate the Union factions … a true example of what man or woman will do to further their own cause. I would love to be able to express all these opinions to each and every one of you up close and personal – in your face so to speak and be able to gauge your reaction.  I have often sent you all e-mail links to the EYE-BALL Opinion posts on this matter – not one of you have ever responded and that is OK – but did you even read the content comments? You are not listening to the people – you think because you hold elected office your tenure is secure – well you should be the first to acknowledge you should never take the people’s support for granted. There is a solution … get off your arse’s and do what your were elected to do – uphold the integrity of the Parliament.
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