Cesar Melhem has a lot to answer at Royal Commission
Labor MP and former union official Cesar Melhem has a lot to answer when he fronts the trade unions Royal Commission this week over the latest rorting allegations.
Last week, TURC was told Mr Melhem took a $130,000 overseas trip paid for by employer, ACI, and lined up false invoices under which his union was paid $300,000 following an employer-friendly deal over EastLink that Bill Shorten arranged.
As well, Mr Melhem still has to answer suggestions that he lied on oath atthe Commission in June when he denied having spoken to another witness about the hearings. An adviser to Premier Daniel Andrews, John-Paul Blandthorn, subsequently gave evidence that Mr Melhem tried to discuss with him three matters the Commission was investigating.
All this is on top of the long list of other disguised payments to his union and his slush fund that Mr Melhem is alleged to have lined up, about which the Commission has heard evidence previously.
This again shows why decent and fair-minded people across the political spectrum need to throw their weight behind union conduct reforms to raise standards and support those union officials who put their workers first.
For some of the many accounts of last week’s hearings, see The Age’s Embattled Melhem’s paid trip revealed at and the Herald Sun’s Bogus bill blowtorch.