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- May 17, 2006
Kovco - Defence screws up again
I feel sorry for the Kovco family. Not only have they lost Jake, killed in Iraq, but then they had to endure the fuckup over his body getting misplaced on the way back to Australia. Now Defence has managed to lose a copy of the draft report into the mixup about the handling of his body. It seems it was left on a CD in a public computer in the Qantas Club lounge at Melbourne airport by the officer who led the investigation.
Now, I’d normally give Defence a spray about incompetence and insensitivity in handling the Kovco matter, and its degeneration into a comedy of errors, but presently I feel its a case of people …glasshouse …stones.
I have to wonder why the officer who lost the CD was using it in one of the lounge’s computers - surely Defence can afford to have provided her with a laptop of her own? I’m also fascinated by the use of a CD as the primary means of getting the report back to Australia - no email in Australia’s base in Baghdad? How surprising too that the report appears to have found no individual responsible - it was a failure of process.
Update (19/05/2006): Don’t think I’d like to be in Brig Liz Cosson’s shoes. She’s the officer who lost the CD. With the Minister for Defence and others desperately looking for a scapegoat, she’s right in the firing line. Makes it easier that she’s not part of the boy’s club at Russell. Plenty of them still thrive despite roles in monumental fuckups over such things as submarines, helicopters, APC’s, not working as intended and overrunning their budgets by hundreds of millions of dollars.
Technorati Tags: Kovco investigation, incompetence, Department of Defence
6 Responses to “Kovco - Defence screws up again”
Chances are, they didn’t want to move it by other than “safehand”. Hmmm, proved not so safe after all…
By Boysenberry on May 17, 2006
I’m surprised it was placed into a non secure computer. But, what do I know? Maybe the DDA has run out of spare laptops?
By antikva on May 18, 2006
Very sad for the whole Kovco family, as if he death wasn’t sad enough without all this other crap.
By Jo. on May 18, 2006
This whole situation reeks of a massive cover up. How is it that Jake’s wife STILL does not know what happened that night, even though there were witnesses in the room when he died??
A lost disc? yeah. Right.
By Steph on May 19, 2006
The ADF have enjoyed ‘holy cow’ status up to now.
It is about time their blundering came under greater scrutiny.
By Cartledge on May 19, 2006
In my opinion it’s just all a complete load of Bee Ess.
Several reasons:
The amount of mixed information reported by the media.
The amount of accidents and blunders that have occurred.
The blatant use of the trapped miners to cover up the issue.
It is very horrific to be shown what little compassion the DOD and GOV have for families of the fallen, given that they openly advertise that we should join the Armed forces to serve the country.
My heart goes out to the family of Jake Kovco, may he Rest in Peace.
Peace & Love
Hire
By Hire the wonderful on May 25, 2006