on 26-03-2016 12:05 AM
Dear All,
My family and I are shocked by the level of Corruption & Misconduct within Victorian Government Departments (Dept of Housing , Victorian Ombudsman and VCAT). My family and I are very good Public Tenants (my Son has a disability Autism) but since our very valid complaints against Two Dept of Housing Problem Managers, we are experiencing discrimination, Maladministration and reduction in essential services by the Dept of Housing. The manner in which the Victorian Ombudsman and VCAT Mishandle our complaints is nothing short of Appalling Misconduct and Corruption. We are uncovering a deepset Lack of Integrity, Lack of Accountability and Lack of Transparency within each of these Government Departments, Laws need to be changed to Protect Public Housing Tenants but Also the General Public.
It is the job of Victorian Ombudsman to make the Dept of Housing staff accountable for their actions, but they have done nothing to resolve our complaints
Until The Victorian Ombudsman Act 1973 is corrected, Vic Ombudsman staff will not bother to do their jobs properly. A report (full of errors) came back from a "Junior officer" at the Ombudsman office who stated she will not investigate our complaints. She got all the facts wrong. We escalated this to her manager who replied "Sorry but we have limited resources" The Law states that the Victorian Ombudsman decides whether to make enquiries or investigate complaints (two different things), when we ask for the details of the responses by the Dept of Housing to the Vic Ombudsman, the Vic Ombudsman refuse to provide this information as they state that the Victorian Ombudsman are not subject to Freedom of Information. So where is Transparency to allow us to correct Department of Housing Inaccuracies and Misleading Statements???
As for VCAT, from our experience they take the Cake for Misconduct and Corruption. In our last Tenants Application to VCAT against the Department of Housing, Senior Member completely Left Out of the Final Written Reasons all the repairs that the Dept of Housing were Requested to do by Consumer Affairs, also VCAT Senior Member convenientely left out most of our vital evidence, he also made numerous Errors for eg "Big hole in the roof finally filled after days instead of Three and a Half Years".
Our Family again have taken the Dept of Housing to VCAT but we are currently experiencing, Biased Members which we requested be Disqualified, also No fair hearing, No impartiality and gross Misconduct. VCAT have Prevented Three persons we Summoned into VCAT which is vital evidence to our case (One being the Junior Vic Ombudsman Officer who made nothing but errors in her report). All the Best to you All. mariem888
on 01-04-2016 09:40 AM
tasfleur,
The only solution for our Family is to take a stance and to make Government agencies in Victoria Accountable for their actions/inactions.
mariem888.
on 01-04-2016 01:57 PM
Yes, that may be a solution but have you considered that the more you push these departments the more they will push back.
You may very well find yourself out on the street before you can blink.
I am in NSW but I would think these agencies are much the same....and I know from personal experience that you are rarely the winner when you take on any Government authority.
on 01-04-2016 02:34 PM
michellebartley,
Hi Michelle,
Thank you for sharing your experiences, what you have experienced is awful.
I sincerely hope that your life has turned around in a positive way.
Confucius says, "It does not matter how slowly you go, so long as you do not stop."
Best wishes
mariem888
on 01-04-2016 04:26 PM
Mariem888, I suspect you are fighting a losing battle one way or the other as it has gone on for a very long time according to what you have posted.
Might be better just to let it go and put more energy into getting somewhere new outside of the Government housing system?
Life is short and you could decide that some battles are just not worth fighting, especially if there is no light to be seen at the end of that particular tunnel.
I wish you all the best for the future.
on 01-04-2016 09:16 PM
02-04-2016 10:06 AM - edited 02-04-2016 10:06 AM
It isn't about that kind of 'courage' Mariem888, you just have to know when the situation is futile and pointless and not worth the effort; what really takes intelligence, as well as real courage, is knowing when to step away and make better use of life and time ...
Good luck with it all.
02-04-2016 12:39 PM - edited 02-04-2016 12:40 PM
Tas, I think there's another message in that pic
Perhaps Marie thinks the world owes her
on 02-04-2016 12:50 PM
I'm now thinking we should know both sides of the story.
on 02-04-2016 07:04 PM
Here's another Churchill quote:
‘Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.’
03-04-2016 03:25 PM - edited 03-04-2016 03:29 PM
According official figures in Victoria there are about 80 000 people on a waiting list for public housing, and the waiting period is expected to be 20 years. There are also about 20 000 properties empty and in desperate need of repairs before they could be considered fit for anybody moving in. And the money is just not there.