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NSW Premier resignation (3 Viewers)

enoilgam

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But then could you sue them for defamation? Surely dragging someone through the mud without any consequences when found innocent just goes against the justice system. Even for court cases that span over a couple of years, in the end the party that was innocent receive a reimbursement for their time and damages.
No because they have cleared you, so they didnt defame you. As a government agency, they also have a degree of immunity from being sued for this sort of thing. I think ICAC will be under a lot of pressure to come up with results now - if the investigation into Gladys turns up nothing then I think they will come under fire from parliament. The Sidoti investigation has already gone nowhere and they are plucking at straws, so all in all not a good look for them.
 

Life'sHard

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No because they have cleared you, so they didnt defame you. As a government agency, they also have a degree of immunity from being sued for this sort of thing. I think ICAC will be under a lot of pressure to come up with results now - if the investigation into Gladys turns up nothing then I think they will come under fire from parliament. The Sidoti investigation has already gone nowhere and they are plucking at straws, so all in all not a good look for them.
So you're saying if I just call out anyone and make rumours and false news which the public take as truth, if I say "it's just a prank bro you're actually all good" I can't be sued?
 

enoilgam

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So you're saying if I just call out anyone and make rumours and false news which the public take as truth, if I say "it's just a prank bro you're actually all good" I can't be sued?
There is a big difference, you are asserting that the rumours/fake news are true when you know they arent. ICAC are saying we are investigating alleged corruption, they arent saying "X is corrupt" whilst knowing it isnt true.
 

Life'sHard

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There is a big difference, you are asserting that the rumours/fake news are true when you know they arent. ICAC are saying we are investigating alleged corruption, they arent saying "X is corrupt" whilst knowing it isnt true.
If your statements are all alleged but the general public now takes it as truth but you had no assertations, would you be cleared?
 
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BLIT2014

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Also, he probably doesn't have time given he has six kids he should be co-parenting with his partner.
Perrottet probably has been planning to run for premier for a while though.
 

enoilgam

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Perrottet probably has been planning to run for premier for a while though.
He is running with Matt Kean, which is probably going to get him over the line. NSW and by extension the NSW Liberals are more left leaning, so Kean or his factional support would be needed.
 

Hiheyhello

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No, it’s the correct thing for her to do and is no way an admission of guilt.
i don’t think that it’s right for an individual to step down if they’re not guilty - what message is that propagating? that’s the kind of thing that happens under dictatorships.

conversely if one is guilty by any means, then stepping down is absolutely the right thing to do. and they know that too

i’m not trying to suggest that i think gladys to be guilty (i have no idea what her personal motivations were), i’m just questioning what you previously said, about how subsuming to false allegations should be socially approbated and encouraged.
 

quickoats

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i don’t think that it’s right for an individual to step down if they’re not guilty - what message is that propagating? that’s the kind of thing that happens under dictatorships.

conversely if one is guilty by any means, then stepping down is absolutely the right thing to do. and they know that too

i’m not trying to suggest that i think gladys to be guilty (i have no idea what her personal motivations were), i’m just questioning what you previously said, about how subsuming to false allegations should be socially approbated and encouraged.
I understand where you’re coming from (and this has been the opinion of Christian Porter) - this sets a precedent that one can lose their job with just a simple allegation.

Gladys is setting an example that ministers should not be holding office while they’re under investigation (even if she believes she’s innocent) in order to maintain public trust in the government system. Ideally, she’d be able to dip, undergo this process and come back. However the ICAC process and media frenzy surrounding it makes that almost impossible for her to re enter politics even if her name is cleared.

Stepping aside would’ve been appropriate but not in the current political climate (everyone would focus on the Gladys mess rather than the transition out of COVID).
 

enoilgam

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I understand where you’re coming from (and this has been the opinion of Christian Porter) - this sets a precedent that one can lose their job with just a simple allegation.
Again, not a Christian Porter fan, but what happened to him was so wrong. Like, there is virtually no evidence beyond hearsay - the alleged victim herself isnt even around to confirm the allegation.

It really bothers me all the commentary around sexual assault and how women "must" be believed. Like nowadays, anyone can claim rape and that virtually destroys a person's reputation. The worst part is people want the laws changed to make it easier to convict people for rape and I definitely dont support this at all. As Ive said in this thread before, the proper administration of justice trumps all and we have an innocent until proven guilty legal system. If a woman claims rape and a man denies it and there is no evidence of a crime beyond her testimony, then unfortunately that isnt enough to convict and jail someone. It isnt about people not believing the victim, belief and proof are two different things.
 

CM_Tutor

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Gladys has acted in line with a belief that the office is more important than the person who holds it, and in resigning the Premiership, has acted honourably. As for her actions in the past, we'll need to wait for ICAC to do its work. It was established with powers like those of a standing Royal Commission specifically because there are actions that may not be provably criminal but that does not make them acceptable in those holding public office. Our lack of a similar anti-corruption body at the Federal level is a serious deficiency in our accountability measures.
 

enoilgam

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It was established with powers like those of a standing Royal Commission specifically because there are actions that may not be provably criminal but that does not make them acceptable in those holding public office.
It was established via the Liberal government in the late 80s as a de-facto way to investigate the former Labour government. Back then, corruption was far more common than what it is now. I think the public fails to understand that corruption is quite rare in Modern Australia. I've worked in the public service for many years and there are so many controls and systems in place to prevent corrupt conduct, it's very difficult to get away with these days.

The lack of corruption creates a problem because ICAC has to be seen to investigate something, which is why they tend to make mountains out of molehills. There just simply isnt much of substance for them to investigate. In NSW there are maybe 2-3 cases of serious corruption every year.

Our lack of a similar anti-corruption body at the Federal level is a serious deficiency in our accountability measures.
There isn't much appetite for it because they have seen how unaccountable and damaging ICAC has been for many states. I think there should be an ICAC at a Federal level, but it needs to be designed a different way. Instead of being like a standing Royal Commission, it should operate more like a Police CIB. It should have police-like powers to investigate corruption and recommend prosecution, but it shouldn't be allowed to hold public hearings, compel testimony or create public reports until after court proceedings have concluded.
 

CM_Tutor

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Again, not a Christian Porter fan, but what happened to him was so wrong. Like, there is virtually no evidence beyond hearsay - the alleged victim herself isnt even around to confirm the allegation.

It really bothers me all the commentary around sexual assault and how women "must" be believed. Like nowadays, anyone can claim rape and that virtually destroys a person's reputation. The worst part is people want the laws changed to make it easier to convict people for rape and I definitely dont support this at all. As Ive said in this thread before, the proper administration of justice trumps all and we have an innocent until proven guilty legal system. If a woman claims rape and a man denies it and there is no evidence of a crime beyond her testimony, then unfortunately that isnt enough to convict and jail someone. It isnt about people not believing the victim, belief and proof are two different things.
1. Porter had to go when he accepted a considerable amount of money from unknown parties, placing him in a position to be improperly influenced. His subsequent behaviours, including attempts at suppression of statements made to the court and settling in return for a clarification that stated the obvious mean he will be "judged" by observers, it's part of what goes with being a public figure.
2. Cases of false accusations of rape are exceedingly rare, far far less common that a victim who chooses not to report their assault.
3. Evidence of the effect on the victim can be found in years of subsequent trauma, irrespective of whether criminal charges are contemplated. Believing the victim is regularly an important part of their coming to terms with their assault, it is far from saying convict on an accusation and nothing more. I know too many people who have been raped and the damage done by rapists to their victim(s) lives is immense.
4. The rate of successful prosecution for rape is low, and the idea that there is a crisis going on with men being victimised with false allegations of rape is absurd.
 

CM_Tutor

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The lack of corruption creates a problem because ICAC has to be seen to investigate something, which is why they tend to make mountains out of molehills. There just simply isnt much of substance for them to investigate. In NSW there are maybe 2-3 cases of serious corruption every year.
You are entitled to your perspective, but I don't share it. ICAC has spent quite some time on the Obeid issues, for example, and it has demonstrated how the Coalition have tried to get around bans on developers shoveling money to governments for favourable planning decisions. Greiner's defense that he was only "technically corrupt" and his rescue by poor drafting of the ICAC Act was hardly a vindication. There are people who believe ICAC is some out-of-control body doing more damage than corruption does... I am not one of them.

Further, the lack of appetite for a Federal ICAC because it would demonstrate how lax things have got. Pork-barreling car park funds and the blatant sports rorts funds show that politicians (and both sides do it) want to splash around money at elections in unaccountable ways.

Finally, the standard for retaining public office is not, and should never be, "I've done nothing that I could be successfully prosecuted for." Spending $33 million to buy $3 million worth of land may happen through gross incompetence or shady dealings without crossing the line into overt criminality, but that should not be a shield from scrutiny or accountability.
 

brent012

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Umm, so we do we need a new thread for Barilaro's sudden resignation?
 

BLIT2014

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