Money laundering only happens when you try to take money out of Australia. Once the stamp duty is paid the black money turns into white money.
Australia’s property boom making the nation poorer
- Thread starter themickey
- Start date
Development outrage
‘I’m gonna hurt them’: Jean Nassif hits back in extraordinary tirade from ‘rehab’
By Lucy Cormack, Carrie Fellner and Sue Williams July 21, 2023
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw...dinary-tirade-from-rehab-20230719-p5dppt.html
NSW Police issued a warrant for Nassif’s arrest last month.
He fiercely denied any wrongdoing and claimed police did not attempt to speak to him before they issued a warrant for his arrest.
“They say I’m disappearing ... on the news ... to declare that I am on the run, and they require public assistance to find me. I begged [police] to call me any time he wants. He never did. I’m here ... they’re lying dogs,” he said.
“When I get fit from my illnesses and from my rehab, I will face my problems. Never run away from my problems. I’m a warrior. I’m a fighter for good ... not fighter for evil.
“They find one project where the engineer had a mistake with the structure and they dump it on me.
Apartment owners in the Vicinity building in Canterbury are among those impacted by the collapse of Toplace Group.CREDIT:JANIE BARRETT
“I want to fight back, and I’m gonna hurt them. They destroyed my family.
“The reason why Jean Nassif is overseas is Chandler and the police force, because they want to take my business and my empire.”
Hadley implored Nassif to return to Australia to face the claims made against him by thousands of owners alleging defects in their units.
“If he were the courageous man that he says he is, he’d come back to assist his daughter in her criminal battle, as well as his own criminal matter. ”
Nassif and two of his companies are pursuing a defamation case against Hadley and Nine over eight broadcasts alleged to have conveyed that the builder was incompetent, dishonest, and that buyers should have concerns about dealing with him. Nine is vigorously defending the case.
Nassif’s lawyer Rebekah Giles indicated on Thursday she intended to cease acting in the proceedings.
A spokeswoman for Chandler said the consequences for developers and their financiers for poor choices were becoming starker as recent reforms took effect.
“The Residential Apartment Buildings (Compliance and Enforcement Powers) Act 2020 holds developers accountable for the buildings they build, and the designers, builders and certifiers they engage,” the spokeswoman said.
“When developers accept deposits from purchasers and promise to deliver a fit for purpose-compliant buildings, they are responsible for the outcomes and they cannot blame contractors when things go wrong.”
Last year in state parliament, Chandler accused Nassif of trying to discredit him by falsely claiming he asked for a $5 million bribe.
Apartment owners in Toplace’s Vicinity complex at Canterbury, where emergency propping has been installed after experts deemed it at risk of collapse, were incensed by Nassif’s remarks.
IT manager Patrick Quintal said he was appalled. “He doesn’t sound to me like a person who’s sorry for what they’ve done, just sorry he got caught,” said Quintal, 29.
The repair bill for the building has been estimated at a minimum of $50 million, leaving owners in fear they will be left destitute by Toplace’s collapse.
“It might have been the engineers’ fault, but he was the one who hired them and kept them on, and took the money from the unit buyers, so the final responsibility lies with him,” Quintal said.
“Instead, we owners are having to deal with the consequences of his actions and the fact he’s deflecting the responsibility and saying it’s not his fault isn’t right.
“We’re the ones who are paying.”
‘I’m gonna hurt them’: Jean Nassif hits back in extraordinary tirade from ‘rehab’
By Lucy Cormack, Carrie Fellner and Sue Williams July 21, 2023
https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw...dinary-tirade-from-rehab-20230719-p5dppt.html
NSW Police issued a warrant for Nassif’s arrest last month.
He fiercely denied any wrongdoing and claimed police did not attempt to speak to him before they issued a warrant for his arrest.
“They say I’m disappearing ... on the news ... to declare that I am on the run, and they require public assistance to find me. I begged [police] to call me any time he wants. He never did. I’m here ... they’re lying dogs,” he said.
“When I get fit from my illnesses and from my rehab, I will face my problems. Never run away from my problems. I’m a warrior. I’m a fighter for good ... not fighter for evil.
“They find one project where the engineer had a mistake with the structure and they dump it on me.
Apartment owners in the Vicinity building in Canterbury are among those impacted by the collapse of Toplace Group.CREDIT:JANIE BARRETT
“I want to fight back, and I’m gonna hurt them. They destroyed my family.
“The reason why Jean Nassif is overseas is Chandler and the police force, because they want to take my business and my empire.”
Hadley implored Nassif to return to Australia to face the claims made against him by thousands of owners alleging defects in their units.
“If he were the courageous man that he says he is, he’d come back to assist his daughter in her criminal battle, as well as his own criminal matter. ”
Nassif and two of his companies are pursuing a defamation case against Hadley and Nine over eight broadcasts alleged to have conveyed that the builder was incompetent, dishonest, and that buyers should have concerns about dealing with him. Nine is vigorously defending the case.
Nassif’s lawyer Rebekah Giles indicated on Thursday she intended to cease acting in the proceedings.
A spokeswoman for Chandler said the consequences for developers and their financiers for poor choices were becoming starker as recent reforms took effect.
“The Residential Apartment Buildings (Compliance and Enforcement Powers) Act 2020 holds developers accountable for the buildings they build, and the designers, builders and certifiers they engage,” the spokeswoman said.
“When developers accept deposits from purchasers and promise to deliver a fit for purpose-compliant buildings, they are responsible for the outcomes and they cannot blame contractors when things go wrong.”
Last year in state parliament, Chandler accused Nassif of trying to discredit him by falsely claiming he asked for a $5 million bribe.
Apartment owners in Toplace’s Vicinity complex at Canterbury, where emergency propping has been installed after experts deemed it at risk of collapse, were incensed by Nassif’s remarks.
IT manager Patrick Quintal said he was appalled. “He doesn’t sound to me like a person who’s sorry for what they’ve done, just sorry he got caught,” said Quintal, 29.
The repair bill for the building has been estimated at a minimum of $50 million, leaving owners in fear they will be left destitute by Toplace’s collapse.
“It might have been the engineers’ fault, but he was the one who hired them and kept them on, and took the money from the unit buyers, so the final responsibility lies with him,” Quintal said.
“Instead, we owners are having to deal with the consequences of his actions and the fact he’s deflecting the responsibility and saying it’s not his fault isn’t right.
“We’re the ones who are paying.”
The Box Hill City Centre was his next big project.
You're right. And the web page is still up, advertising the project to potential clients.
https://www.toplace.com.au/experience/box-hill-city-centre/
Cnr Terry Road & Mason Road, Box Hill, Sydney, NSW 2765
YOUR PLACE TO GROW
1300 867 522
NOW LEASING – CONTACT AGENT TO EXPRESS YOUR INTEREST
Cnr Terry & Mason Rd, Box Hill, Sydney, NSW 2765
- Secure Your Place in Box Hill City Centre
- Outgoings: Contact Agent
Box Hill Town Centre is to be the master planned town centre providing essential infrastructure, an easy daily needs shopping experience and family friendly dining precinct.
Key features include:Coles, Liquor Land Supermarket
- Chemist Warehouse
- Major Affordable Retail Store
- Well-designed community spaces
- Major Medical/Imaging Precinct
- Approximately 479 Retail Car spaces
- Major transport hub
- Service Industries
- Food & Beverage Operators
- Fashion/Homewares
- Existing Indian Grocer @ Approx 385m2
*MacroDimasi Demographic Report 2019
Location:
Box Hill
Project Type:
Shopping Centre
Project Status:
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Phone Number:
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Book your private consultation to invest in this exclusive limited offering.
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Meanwhile......."Toplace’s founder and sole director Jean Nassif is on the run overseas. ".
When it comes to the building industry, it appears the Australian Government couldn't organise a pissup in a brewery.
Little wonder everything is so fucked up with housing in Australia. Talk about incompetent, Jesus save us!!!
Crackdown on Airbnb-style rentals ‘a farce’
Campbell Kwan Commercial property reporter
Jul 21, 2023
https://www.afr.com/property/residential/crackdown-on-airbnb-style-rentals-a-farce-20230721-p5dq4r
NSW rules limiting owners from renting out properties on a short-term basis on platforms such as Airbnb to 180 nights a year have not been enforced once in nearly two years of operation, records show.
The 180-day cap for non-hosted short-term rentals was introduced by the state’s then-Coalition government in November 2021 as part of efforts to make rents more affordable. It applies to Sydney and local government areas including Newcastle, Ballina, the Bega Valley, and parts of the Clarence Valley.
Local council mayors say the short-term rental market is worsening the housing supply crisis. Jason South
But the NSW Office of Fair Trading, which was tasked with enforcing the limit if a complaint is lodged via a local council, has not issued any penalties. Since the cap came into effect, Fair Trading has received over 550 complaints, but none resulted in a penalty.
Some local council officials say the cap has failed to do anything to ease the rental housing crisis due to being too lenient, and urged the new Labor government of Premier Chris Minns to act.
“The 180-day cap is a farce,” Byron Shire Mayor Michael Lyon told AFR Weekend. “It does nothing and it was designed to do nothing. It was designed to throw a bone to those people that were complaining about the lack of residential housing.”
Sydney lord mayor Clover Moore said the cap was too long, and Fair Trading’s short-term rental register was “incomplete, inaccurate and not of a sufficient standard”, making it difficult for councils to take action.
Australia’s Airbnb regulations are lenient compared to overseas counterparts. Outside of NSW, Melbourne and Canberra do not charge short-stay operators, but both have said they were aware of community concerns on housing availability and affordability.
By comparison, cities such as Amsterdam, Toronto and Boston impose tourist taxes on short-term rentals, while San Francisco and London have placed an annual 30 to 90-night cap on short-stay rentals.
NSW Minister for Fair Trading and Better Regulation Anoulack Chanthivong admitted the 180-day cap had not been effective. Mr Chanthivong said he would work with local governments to make it easier for them to enforce rules against short-term rentals.
Part of the ineffectiveness of the cap was that it relied heavily on local governments reporting breaches to Fair Trading, he said.
“Fair Trading can investigate serious breaches but that relies on local governments and others reporting issues. Most breaches of the code relate to things local governments are best placed to manage and enforce, like parking violations,” Mr Chanthivong said.
Australia has fewer homes per 1000 people than the average of nations in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, with NSW at the epicentre of the housing crisis. That has helped fuel a rise 6.3 per cent in rents in the year to May, the highest level in more than a decade.
Federal Housing Minister Julie Collins has signalled support for further regulatory “interventions” in the short-term rental market but has been unwilling to endorse federal measures due to rental and tenancy reforms typically being addressed at the state and local levels.
Ms Collins declined to comment when asked about NSW’s cap not being enforced.
Mr Lyon said the Minns government was not moving quickly enough on short-term market rental reforms as it had yet to endorse the Independent Planning Commission’s advice, which recommended a 60-day cap for the Byron Shire due to the locality’s rental crisis.
In the Byron Shire, residents spend on average over 50 per cent of their income on rent, Mr Lyon said. The council also has the highest rough sleeping rate in NSW.
Murray Cox, creator rental listings data websire Inside AirBnB, said he was not surprised at the lack of enforcement by the NSW government as it was difficult to enforce annual caps. He said hosts could use different platforms or create multiple accounts on the same platform to hide their activity.
“The rental cap is not working if there have been no fines despite evidence of illegal full-time short-term rentals. It’s my understanding that the NSW government is receiving data from the platforms, so the lack of enforcement either points to lack of political will, or the will of the regulators, or both,” Mr Cox said.
Campbell Kwan Commercial property reporter
Jul 21, 2023
https://www.afr.com/property/residential/crackdown-on-airbnb-style-rentals-a-farce-20230721-p5dq4r
NSW rules limiting owners from renting out properties on a short-term basis on platforms such as Airbnb to 180 nights a year have not been enforced once in nearly two years of operation, records show.
The 180-day cap for non-hosted short-term rentals was introduced by the state’s then-Coalition government in November 2021 as part of efforts to make rents more affordable. It applies to Sydney and local government areas including Newcastle, Ballina, the Bega Valley, and parts of the Clarence Valley.
Local council mayors say the short-term rental market is worsening the housing supply crisis. Jason South
But the NSW Office of Fair Trading, which was tasked with enforcing the limit if a complaint is lodged via a local council, has not issued any penalties. Since the cap came into effect, Fair Trading has received over 550 complaints, but none resulted in a penalty.
Some local council officials say the cap has failed to do anything to ease the rental housing crisis due to being too lenient, and urged the new Labor government of Premier Chris Minns to act.
“The 180-day cap is a farce,” Byron Shire Mayor Michael Lyon told AFR Weekend. “It does nothing and it was designed to do nothing. It was designed to throw a bone to those people that were complaining about the lack of residential housing.”
Sydney lord mayor Clover Moore said the cap was too long, and Fair Trading’s short-term rental register was “incomplete, inaccurate and not of a sufficient standard”, making it difficult for councils to take action.
Australia’s Airbnb regulations are lenient compared to overseas counterparts. Outside of NSW, Melbourne and Canberra do not charge short-stay operators, but both have said they were aware of community concerns on housing availability and affordability.
By comparison, cities such as Amsterdam, Toronto and Boston impose tourist taxes on short-term rentals, while San Francisco and London have placed an annual 30 to 90-night cap on short-stay rentals.
NSW Minister for Fair Trading and Better Regulation Anoulack Chanthivong admitted the 180-day cap had not been effective. Mr Chanthivong said he would work with local governments to make it easier for them to enforce rules against short-term rentals.
Part of the ineffectiveness of the cap was that it relied heavily on local governments reporting breaches to Fair Trading, he said.
“Fair Trading can investigate serious breaches but that relies on local governments and others reporting issues. Most breaches of the code relate to things local governments are best placed to manage and enforce, like parking violations,” Mr Chanthivong said.
Australia has fewer homes per 1000 people than the average of nations in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, with NSW at the epicentre of the housing crisis. That has helped fuel a rise 6.3 per cent in rents in the year to May, the highest level in more than a decade.
Federal Housing Minister Julie Collins has signalled support for further regulatory “interventions” in the short-term rental market but has been unwilling to endorse federal measures due to rental and tenancy reforms typically being addressed at the state and local levels.
Ms Collins declined to comment when asked about NSW’s cap not being enforced.
Mr Lyon said the Minns government was not moving quickly enough on short-term market rental reforms as it had yet to endorse the Independent Planning Commission’s advice, which recommended a 60-day cap for the Byron Shire due to the locality’s rental crisis.
In the Byron Shire, residents spend on average over 50 per cent of their income on rent, Mr Lyon said. The council also has the highest rough sleeping rate in NSW.
Murray Cox, creator rental listings data websire Inside AirBnB, said he was not surprised at the lack of enforcement by the NSW government as it was difficult to enforce annual caps. He said hosts could use different platforms or create multiple accounts on the same platform to hide their activity.
“The rental cap is not working if there have been no fines despite evidence of illegal full-time short-term rentals. It’s my understanding that the NSW government is receiving data from the platforms, so the lack of enforcement either points to lack of political will, or the will of the regulators, or both,” Mr Cox said.
Dutton told of contractor’s corruption cloud weeks before $9m deal awarded
By Michael Bachelard and Nick McKenzie July 25, 2023
https://www.smh.com.au/national/dut...s-before-9m-deal-awarded-20230724-p5dqou.html
The Home Affairs Department handed a multimillion-dollar offshore detention contract to an Australian businessman just one month after federal police told then minister Peter Dutton that the man was under investigation for bribery.
Documents tabled in federal parliament reveal that the AFP’s acting commissioner told Dutton in July 2018 that Sydney-based Mozammil Bhojani was under investigation over suspected bribes to Nauruan politicians. The payments were made to secure preferential access to millions of dollars worth of phosphate for his company Radiance International.
Mozammil Gulamabbas Bhojani.
But despite the verbal police warning to Dutton, documents obtained by this masthead show that the following month – August 2018 – the Department of Home Affairs entered into a fresh contract with Radiance. The contract, signed by Bhojani, was to provide accommodation for refugees and asylum seekers at a particular location. That contract ultimately paid the company $9.3 million in taxpayer money.
Just one month after the contract was signed, police arrested Bhojani and charged him with paying more than $100,000 in bribes to two Nauruan officials. Bhojani pleaded guilty and was convicted in 2020.
Bhojani and his companies first came under AFP scrutiny in 2015, when it began investigating bribery of Nauru officials. But despite this, documents produced in answers to questions on notice show that his company was a large contractor to Home Affairs from 2016 onwards.
Despite the federal police attention and Bhojani’s conviction, Radiance International continued providing services on Nauru until at least June this year. Bhojani ceased to be a director of the company shortly after his 2020 conviction.
The department has paid well over $30 million in total to Radiance companies to provide accommodation on Nauru in three different hotels. There is no suggestion that Dutton himself played a part in signing the contracts.
This masthead’s Home Truths investigation can also reveal that in December 2020, anti-money laundering agency Austrac warned Home Affairs that a second subcontractor in the offshore processing system was suspected of corruption and money laundering.
That subcontractor was controlled by a powerful Nauruan politician who Austrac also warned might be corrupt, and who this masthead is not naming for legal reasons.
Before the Austrac warning to Home Affairs, the allegedly corrupt politician was paid more than $2 million in Australian taxpayer money to supply services on Nauru between 2016 and 2020. The payments continued for another two years after Austrac warned Home Affairs the politician and his company may be involved in “corruption” and “money laundering”.
Anabar Pond Hotel in Nauru was one of the facilities run by Radiance International.
In March 2022,after the federal police launched an investigation into allegations the politician may have corruptly used Australian taxpayer funds paid to him by Home Affairs’ lead contractor Canstruct, the payments continued, including about $400,000 paid since Labor took power in May.
Authorities are also investigating whether direct grants given to the Nauru government by Australia were also siphoned off by allegedly corrupt officials, who have not been named.
The new information comes after Home Truths revealed that a chain of suspect contracts worth millions of dollars led from the Home Affairs Department to powerful Pacific Island politicians.
All Home Affairs’ lead contractors – Broadspectrum, Canstruct and Paladin – are implicated in the suspected systemic misuse of taxpayer dollars in Nauru and Papua New Guinea, which is being investigated by the AFP and Austrac.
The revelations of the department’s dealings with Bhojani raise fresh questions for Dutton, the department and its longstanding secretary, Michael Pezzullo. Critics have said a focus on maintaining the system of offshore detention outweighed other considerations including probity.
Until last year, Home Affairs administratively oversaw both the police who were investigating and charging the Sydney businessman, and the offshore processing system that was awarding contracts to his company. When all the functions of Home Affairs were put into the same department in 2017, then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull said it would “entrench the co-operation between the agencies”.
The revelations also put pressure on Labor’s minister Clare O’Neil to explain how she will clean up the system, which she has promised to overhaul, after Radiance contracts continued until June this year, well into her time in office.
Dutton did not respond to a series of detailed questions, and O’Neil declined to comment. Bhojani did not respond after being contacted through his lawyer.
The Greens on Monday called for a royal commission on offshore detention following this masthead’s reporting into failures in the system, including suspect payments by contractors Broadspectrum, Canstruct and Paladin. Acting leader Mehreen Faruqi said it was the consequence of Australia outsourcing its “responsibilities to refugees to private companies and Pacific countries”.
Internal Broadspectrum communications, obtained by this masthead, show Bhojani companies were involved in selling food and other goods to the offshore detention centres.
Broadspectrum staff expressed concern in 2016 that a senior Nauru politician was receiving kickbacks through Bhojani’s company, AW Exports, which was also allegedly overcharging the Home Affairs contractor for water and soap powder.
The communications show that AW Exports was price gouging on the Home Affairs contract by charging excessive mark-ups on goods. Soap flakes, for example, were being sold at a 30 per cent mark up, and the company was also charging an “admin fee” on top.
A company linked with a senior Nauru politician, who this masthead is not naming for legal reasons, was “mentioned as part of” the AW Exports supply chain, the Broadspectrum emails say.
The alleged price gouging was occurring as the Nauru government was threatening to remove Broadspectrum’s import licence, and saying it wanted a Nauruan entity to import all the goods necessary to run the offshore detention program.
Throughout, Bhojani’s company Radiance International was still able to do business, and supplied goods to the Nauru entity at an “unknown margin”.
It did so only after seeking approval from the politician, “who also charges an unknown margin”, according to Broadspectrum’s internal emails.
That meant Broadspectrum was paying a 184 per cent premium on, for example, bottled water under contracts ultimately funded by the Australian government.
The Broadspectrum employees also complained about a lack of transparency regarding charges and fees, and having no ability to scrutinise them.
By Michael Bachelard and Nick McKenzie July 25, 2023
https://www.smh.com.au/national/dut...s-before-9m-deal-awarded-20230724-p5dqou.html
The Home Affairs Department handed a multimillion-dollar offshore detention contract to an Australian businessman just one month after federal police told then minister Peter Dutton that the man was under investigation for bribery.
Documents tabled in federal parliament reveal that the AFP’s acting commissioner told Dutton in July 2018 that Sydney-based Mozammil Bhojani was under investigation over suspected bribes to Nauruan politicians. The payments were made to secure preferential access to millions of dollars worth of phosphate for his company Radiance International.
Mozammil Gulamabbas Bhojani.
But despite the verbal police warning to Dutton, documents obtained by this masthead show that the following month – August 2018 – the Department of Home Affairs entered into a fresh contract with Radiance. The contract, signed by Bhojani, was to provide accommodation for refugees and asylum seekers at a particular location. That contract ultimately paid the company $9.3 million in taxpayer money.
Just one month after the contract was signed, police arrested Bhojani and charged him with paying more than $100,000 in bribes to two Nauruan officials. Bhojani pleaded guilty and was convicted in 2020.
Bhojani and his companies first came under AFP scrutiny in 2015, when it began investigating bribery of Nauru officials. But despite this, documents produced in answers to questions on notice show that his company was a large contractor to Home Affairs from 2016 onwards.
Despite the federal police attention and Bhojani’s conviction, Radiance International continued providing services on Nauru until at least June this year. Bhojani ceased to be a director of the company shortly after his 2020 conviction.
The department has paid well over $30 million in total to Radiance companies to provide accommodation on Nauru in three different hotels. There is no suggestion that Dutton himself played a part in signing the contracts.
This masthead’s Home Truths investigation can also reveal that in December 2020, anti-money laundering agency Austrac warned Home Affairs that a second subcontractor in the offshore processing system was suspected of corruption and money laundering.
That subcontractor was controlled by a powerful Nauruan politician who Austrac also warned might be corrupt, and who this masthead is not naming for legal reasons.
Before the Austrac warning to Home Affairs, the allegedly corrupt politician was paid more than $2 million in Australian taxpayer money to supply services on Nauru between 2016 and 2020. The payments continued for another two years after Austrac warned Home Affairs the politician and his company may be involved in “corruption” and “money laundering”.
Anabar Pond Hotel in Nauru was one of the facilities run by Radiance International.
In March 2022,after the federal police launched an investigation into allegations the politician may have corruptly used Australian taxpayer funds paid to him by Home Affairs’ lead contractor Canstruct, the payments continued, including about $400,000 paid since Labor took power in May.
Authorities are also investigating whether direct grants given to the Nauru government by Australia were also siphoned off by allegedly corrupt officials, who have not been named.
The new information comes after Home Truths revealed that a chain of suspect contracts worth millions of dollars led from the Home Affairs Department to powerful Pacific Island politicians.
All Home Affairs’ lead contractors – Broadspectrum, Canstruct and Paladin – are implicated in the suspected systemic misuse of taxpayer dollars in Nauru and Papua New Guinea, which is being investigated by the AFP and Austrac.
The revelations of the department’s dealings with Bhojani raise fresh questions for Dutton, the department and its longstanding secretary, Michael Pezzullo. Critics have said a focus on maintaining the system of offshore detention outweighed other considerations including probity.
Until last year, Home Affairs administratively oversaw both the police who were investigating and charging the Sydney businessman, and the offshore processing system that was awarding contracts to his company. When all the functions of Home Affairs were put into the same department in 2017, then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull said it would “entrench the co-operation between the agencies”.
The revelations also put pressure on Labor’s minister Clare O’Neil to explain how she will clean up the system, which she has promised to overhaul, after Radiance contracts continued until June this year, well into her time in office.
Dutton did not respond to a series of detailed questions, and O’Neil declined to comment. Bhojani did not respond after being contacted through his lawyer.
The Greens on Monday called for a royal commission on offshore detention following this masthead’s reporting into failures in the system, including suspect payments by contractors Broadspectrum, Canstruct and Paladin. Acting leader Mehreen Faruqi said it was the consequence of Australia outsourcing its “responsibilities to refugees to private companies and Pacific countries”.
Internal Broadspectrum communications, obtained by this masthead, show Bhojani companies were involved in selling food and other goods to the offshore detention centres.
Broadspectrum staff expressed concern in 2016 that a senior Nauru politician was receiving kickbacks through Bhojani’s company, AW Exports, which was also allegedly overcharging the Home Affairs contractor for water and soap powder.
The communications show that AW Exports was price gouging on the Home Affairs contract by charging excessive mark-ups on goods. Soap flakes, for example, were being sold at a 30 per cent mark up, and the company was also charging an “admin fee” on top.
A company linked with a senior Nauru politician, who this masthead is not naming for legal reasons, was “mentioned as part of” the AW Exports supply chain, the Broadspectrum emails say.
The alleged price gouging was occurring as the Nauru government was threatening to remove Broadspectrum’s import licence, and saying it wanted a Nauruan entity to import all the goods necessary to run the offshore detention program.
Throughout, Bhojani’s company Radiance International was still able to do business, and supplied goods to the Nauru entity at an “unknown margin”.
It did so only after seeking approval from the politician, “who also charges an unknown margin”, according to Broadspectrum’s internal emails.
That meant Broadspectrum was paying a 184 per cent premium on, for example, bottled water under contracts ultimately funded by the Australian government.
The Broadspectrum employees also complained about a lack of transparency regarding charges and fees, and having no ability to scrutinise them.