By: Mark Parton
The Canberra Liberals have secured the Assembly’s support for a full inquiry into the Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT), following serious concerns surrounding the appointment of its Chief Executive Officer and broader failures in governance and oversight.
The Assembly today agreed to a motion moved by Canberra Liberals Leader, Mark Parton, referring the matter to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts for investigation.
Mr Parton said the decision was an important step toward restoring integrity and accountability at CIT.
“This inquiry is about getting to the bottom of how such a serious failure in due diligence was allowed to occur,” Mr Parton said.
“It has now been confirmed that the Minister was aware of an active investigation into serious misconduct before the CEO commenced – yet the appointment went ahead regardless.”
The misconduct was later substantiated, raising serious concerns about the actions of both the CIT Board and the Minister.
Mr Parton said the Board’s admission that it did not know key details of the allegations at the time of appointment demonstrated a “clear breakdown in governance.”
“You cannot appoint the head of a major public institution without knowing the full facts. Canberrans expect better,” he said.
The inquiry will examine the effectiveness of the recruitment process, whether legal obligations were met, and whether the Minister fulfilled his duty of oversight.
“This is about restoring public confidence in one of the ACT’s most important institutions,” Mr Parton said.
“The Assembly has now backed a transparent and independent process to ensure accountability and prevent this from happening again.”
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