2 weeks ago
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The news
Opposition Leader Steven Miles has asked Queensland’s corruption watchdog to probe “what appears to be political intervention and interference” in merit-based recruitment for the state’s chief health officer.
In a letter on Monday to Crime and Corruption Commission chair Bruce Barbour, Miles said publicly available information now “strongly suggests that corrupt conduct and/or misconduct” had occurred.
Steven Miles wrote to corruption watchdog boss Bruce Barbour on Monday.Credit: Joe Ruckli / Australian Financial Review
“The alternative, if not investigated, is a lasting perception that a politician, or politicians, have influenced this process purely for political purposes,” he wrote.
Why it matters
Dr Krispin Hajkowicz is seeking legal advice after his appointment as Dr John Gerrard’s successor was abruptly scuttled by the government, despite his selection being made through a merit-based process run by recruitment agency HardyGroup.
It was not the first time Hajkowicz had been picked as CHO. The former Labor government appointed him to the role in 2021 but he decided not to take it up just days before his official start date, citing personal reasons.
Premier David Crisafulli said this was the reason the government raised concerns with Queensland Health Director-General David Rosengren, who alone was responsible for the appointment.
Crisafulli denied the bureaucrat had been directed to rescind Hajkowicz’s appointment.
The government also denied it intervened because of a Save Victoria Park sign and a Greens election corflute seen outside Hajkowicz’s house; signs that some in the LNP knew about.
What they said
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Miles’ letter, seen by this masthead, said there was a “clear implication” that, at a minimum, Rosengren was given a “tacit instruction” from Crisafulli to rescind the job offer.
“The Queensland Labor opposition asserts that the premier, the minister for health and ambulance services, and likely other senior ministers, including the deputy premier, inappropriately intervened in and potentially directed a senior public servant to rescind an offer made to Dr Krispin Hajkowicz, who was found to be the most meritorious candidate for the chief health officer role following an exhaustive recruitment process,” he wrote.
Miles noted that the recruitment process and decision, under law, should have been for the director-general alone, and that Hajkowicz’s home had recently featured a Save Victoria Park campaign sign.
He also referenced responses from Barbour himself at a recent parliamentary committee hearing, where he emphasised the importance of transparent and merit-based recruitment.
Another perspective
Senior ministers, including Crisafulli, have accused the opposition of using the issue to “distract” from Labor’s legacy in the health sector over almost a decade in government.
The government has been contacted for updated comments.
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