BSA’s Minister Robert Schwarten is playing a despicable and disgusting political game and has been caught out lying and trying to cover up the facts while the victims of the collapse of Coral Coast Homes and SSM Homes Steel Kit homes suffer, Member for Burnett Rob Messenger said today.
Mr Messenger’s comments follow a Media Statement from the Minister which accuses the Member for Burnett of having “a political agenda” and “scoring political points” from the people affected by the fiasco and “hijacking” tonight’s planned meeting from the Member for Bundaberg.
“Instead of trying to deliberately confuse the issue with political spin and behave like a two-year-old who is trying to play off the Member for Bundaberg Jack Dempsey against myself, Schwarten needs to tell the people of Burnett what he is going to do to recover the money and property which has been stolen from the victims of the Coral Coast Homes Crisis,” Mr Messenger said.
“The Minister also needs to stop the lies and cover-up and come clean on his actions in this affair.
“According to BSA’s General Manager Ian Jennings during a recent liquidators meeting where myself and 20 or more creditors attended, Schwarten’s department has known about the serious complaints regarding Coral Coast Homes and John Biles’ for more than 1 year (APR 08),” he said.
Mr Messenger said the questions that the Bligh Government and Schwarten have failed to answer include:
1) When did Schwarten first know about the complaints about Coral Coast Homes and SSM products?
2) Was it the case, as BSA’s General Manager has recently stated during last weeks Coral Coast Home’s liquidators meeting, that the department were aware at least 15 months ago in April 2008 of complaints against John Biles and his companies, or was it earlier?
3) If Mr Jenkins is correct, why did Schwarten fail to act for the last 15 months to protect Burnett/Bundaberg homebuilders and Steel Kit home buyers?
4) How many Burnett and Bundaberg families would have been saved from losing money and property, if Schwarten and his department would have taken the complaints seriously and acted on the cries of help from Burnett and Bundaberg home builders and Coral Coast Homes company insiders/Whistleblowers in the first place?
5) Why has Schwarten ordered a public officer, (Ian Jennings) a senior head of Schwarton's department, who has been referred to the CMC for possible misconduct, to chair a meeting, which will discuss that very own officer’s alleged misconduct?
6) Why has Schwarten failed to provide a senior officer from his department who hasn't been referred to the CMC or isn't the subject of a vote of "No Confidence", to chair tonight's meeting of the victims of Coral Coast homes?
7) Why has Schwarten failed to acknowledge and offer a plan to fix the obvious systemic flaws in the Queensland building industry, which have been discovered during the Coral Coast Building Crisis? i.e.
a) Acceptance by Government of self auditing by builders
b) Failure to insist on the use of trust accounts for transactions.
c) Failure of Kit Home sales to be covered by BSA insurance and legislation.
