17 April (Part 1) - Occupant of glass house lobs large stone
The Daily Mail Online carried
an article about Bexley councillor Munir Malik
last Sunday which said he claimed to have been a Chartered Accountant but “he
has not and never has been a member”. Having once been closely involved in a story
that appeared on the front page of the Daily Mail, I should have known better.
On that occasion, rather a long time ago, the Mail admitted to me that they
invented the story and it would appear that their standards may not have
improved a lot since.
Councillor Malik has since said very clearly that he qualified with the Institute of
Chartered Accountants in England and Wales in 1974 and his qualification has not
been rescinded. However he has not actually been a paid up and practicing member of the
ICAEW for the past 20 years. Unless Munir is a bigger liar than
councillor Cheryl Bacon, which might stretch the credulity of even the most
gullible of Daily Mail readers, it would appear that there has been an element
of political muck raking over this story.
Never
far from the mucky end of politics is Bexley council leader Teresa O’Neill; she
is saying that Munir’s failure to renew his ICAEW membership is “shocking”.
She said the same about former Conservative councillor Ian Clement when he helped
himself to taxpayers’ money but was not so shocked that she could bring herself to
report him to the police. Teresa believed “the integrity of his colleagues should not
be questioned” even though they were the willing beneficiaries of his largesse.
Teresa O’Neill lost her tongue and showed no sign of being shocked when her close colleague
councillor Peter Craske was
arrested for Misconduct in Public Office or when the police tracked a
stream of homophobic obscenities to his address. She does not so much as blush when
spouting the oft repeated lie that Bexley is “built on the foundations of low taxes” when it is
9th worst in London and can invent stories to present to her
tame police force aimed at getting residents arrested on her politically
motivated whim, but she is struck
dumb and shows no sign of being shocked when her mayor and deputy organise
an illegal strip show.
It’s one rule for them and another everyone else.