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November 8th, 2011 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda
Deputy Premier Andrew Fraser went to the CMC with claims against LNP leader Campbell Newman. Photo: Glenn Hunt
The Crime and Misconduct Commission is warning politicians not to use the watchdog in the lead up to next year’s state and council elections by making politically motivated false complaints against each other to gain publicity.
Figures obtained by brisbanetimes.com.au show there have been 32 complaints made to the CMC by state MPs and Brisbane councillors against each other in the lead up to the elections held in the past seven years.
Only one of those complaints was substantiated by the CMC.
A spokeswoman for the watchdog said they would be issuing a warning to politicians in December not to use the CMC for “politically motivated attacks”.
She said politicians will be told not to publicise complaints against other in the lead up to the March council election and the yet-to-be-announced state election.
It is common for politicians to announce they have referred another politician to the CMC in a press release.
Queensland University of Technology political expert Clive Bean said he was surprised by the number of complaints.
Professor Bean and said it was likely CMC referrals were being used as political stunts and it was putting the watchdog in a “difficult” position.
“They can’t afford to look like they are making a preemptive judgment and reject reports off hand,” he said.
“They are effectively saying until the verdict of the investigation is known, the matter should remain confidential.”
Councillors were the worst offenders, with 10 complaints made in the lead up to the 2008 election and nine complaints made in the lead up to the 2004 election.
Of the 10 made in 2008, nine were assessed as needing no further action and one was substantiated.
Of the nine councillor complaints made in 2004, seven were assessed to need no further action and two were unsubstantiated after investigation.
There have been 13 complaints in the lead up to the three state elections since 2004, of those 12 were assessed as needing no further action and one was unsubstantiated after investigation.
The CMC spokeswoman said the term “no further action” meant there was a lack of supporting information; the matter did not fall within the CMC’s jurisdiction; or the allegation did not amount to official misconduct.
Professor Bean cited Deputy Premier Andrew Fraser’s referral of LNP leader Campbell Newman as the latest stunt involving the CMC designed to garner publicity.
On the day of the CMC referral, Mr Fraser issued a media release to that effect.
The CMC found Mr Newman had no case to answer, but not before the referral attracted widespread media attention.
“It’s always going to have an effect when it’s related to a major political figure,” Professor Bean said.
“In particular in that instance there was a lot of publicity around the case in the lead up (to the referral).
“You can see why politicians might try it, particularly if they feel there is some mud to be flung at opponents.”
In 2004, then-CMC chairman Brendan Butler said during some previous election campaigns, some candidates had announced allegations against political opponents would be referred to the CMC “for investigation”.
“Often the complaint was never actually made, or if it was made, was found to be baseless,” Mr Butler said.
“However, the publicity generated by such allegations during an election campaign can be very damaging if there is not enough time to undertake an investigation before the election, even if the complaint is ultimately shown to be baseless.”
Anyone making a false complaint to the CMC knowing it to be untrue can be prosecuted, since it wastes public resources and can unfairly damage reputations.
Current CMC chairman Martin Moynihan has not responded to interview requests.
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