Appearing before a routine scheduled public hearing on “gatekeepers and expectation gaps in Australia’s financial system” at the New South Wales State Library, ASIC deputy chairman Peter Kell responded strongly to allegations of mismanagement in a case involving failed mining company Kagara.
“ASIC does favours for no-one,” Mr Kell said. “Any suggestion otherwise is a serious smear on this organisation and its people. People work at ASIC because they believe in the public interest, and they are committed to the highest levels on integrity.”
The defensive comments come as the corporate watchdog prepares to face a Senate inquiry over its handling of reported misconduct by former Commonwealth Financial Planning advisers.
People work at ASIC because it is a well paid, risk free, secure public service position. ASIC are the sherriffs that come riding into town fve minutes after the bad guys have left.
Very true that ASIC does favours for no-one – they are a pack of pedantic bastards to everyone
ASIC staff may well have integrity but their idea of the public interest is distorted by years spent in the orderly world of paper laden ivory towers – NOT by working WITH ordinary members of the public to help them achieve their goals in a non-perfect world.
Frankly I would hate to see ASIC privatised – then you would have even more overpaid bureaucrats with greater potential for corruption & influence. At least ASIC are an ostensibly honest pack of narrow minded incompetent bastards.
They ‘BELIEVE IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST!’. For goodness sake we RELY on them to look after our interests. PRIVATISE-PRIVATISE!
For Australia’s sake.
Of course they will defend their turf . On the exborbitant salaries some of the chiefs are on and knowing how consitently they stuff up its no suprise.Too busy going to seminars and workshops , doing public service hours , scribbling out new unenforcable policy statements , and above all being in a consistent denial mode . If any goverment department should ever need to be privatised this is the one .
Sadly ASIC should be doing favours for lots of people. All the people who have been victims of fraud including creditors, staff, investors and (via ATO lost revenue) all Australian taxpayers. Hopefully they can produce records that demonstrate they have been underfunded and regularly sought funding. Why do we find out about CBA rouges from the press and not ASIC