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News and Comment November 2010

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9 November - I should have called it www.bexley-is-bent.co.uk

Thames Innovations Centre Thames Innovations CentreThis website began as a protest against Andrew Bashford’s attempt to bamboozle me with lies and lame excuses over the changes made to the B213 in 2009. He went silent when he was caught out; as did councillor Davey who was exposed as two faced. Lying is the norm at Bexley council but deeper corruption is not far under the surface. I have long been aware of the big-bullies blog written by an ex-Bexley council employee, but I can’t make much of it here because I don’t know whether it is true or not. Whilst I am always ready to expose Bexley council for what it is and to paint an unflattering picture of their constant failures, reports must be absolutely factual. I am rather proud of the comment from a very senior council insider; received a while ago it is true, that he/she thinks bexley-is-bonkers is “scrupulously accurate” and “if only the press was as scrupulous”. That is why I haven’t as yet been able to make much use of information from whistleblowers; it’s very difficult to check its veracity and it’s not impossible that it could be a set-up by Bexley council eager to trap me into making a mistake they could capitalize on.

One or two things do check out. I have seen the papers that show that facts relating to Ian Clement’s expenses and the credit card that everyone claimed not to know about, were to be “hidden from the auditors”. And I have seen the papers that show that Bexley police refused to accept a complaint from a member of the public and that the responsible officer was subsequently admonished by his superiors at Scotland Yard for attempting to protect the council. And I have seen the papers that reveal that the only reason Bexley council has not been prosecuted is because a prosecution is deemed not to be in the public interest. I have also noted that when certain facts were presented to the council’s deputy director of legal services she promptly resigned and no one at the council will talk about it. Strange coincidence that.

The press has reported that down at the Bexley Thames Innovation Centre (TIC) in Thamesmead, wholly owned and funded by Bexley council, the manager, Richard Edwards is on bail after being arrested for having indecent images of children on his computer. Now let me say straight away that it is all too easy for someone to stitch up the manager in this way, so he is innocent until proven guilty, right? But all is not happy down at the Centre and staff are frustrated and want to talk. I can say nothing about the case against Mr. Edwards for legal reasons, but the information I am getting from sources that have convinced me must be genuine is that mail going through TIC has been intercepted and money has mysteriously disappeared from the accounts of a business within TIC. Not just petty cash either, more than £100,000 has been mentioned, and the allegation is that the money has found its way via close personal relationships to Bexley TIC tenants.

As if that isn’t enough the scandal is said to extend to drug dealing, and not just dealing, importing the stuff too. So why would a whistleblower want to leak such a story to me and not report it to the bosses? Could it be because they are bent too? The current whistleblower says the last one at the Innovation Centre was summarily sacked by the very manager now under suspicion of paedophilia. No wonder councillors and executives alike are so reluctant to speak to members of the public. One whose responsibilities extend to the TIC is already on record as wanting to gag enquirers. Probably they are all scared stiff of what might be revealed next.

 

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