Taking on the Establishment

The unlawful acts were to minimize the arbitration defence payout, i.e., Telstra's commercial liability to the COT Cases and to the many Australian customers who were paying for a telephone service that was not fit for purpose.

Dilapidated Copperwire Network

Arbitration

The arbitrator involved in the COT case arbitrations, whose actions appeared to favour government interests, asserted that there were no ongoing issues affecting the Cape Bridgewater Holiday Camp. In his May 11, 1995 award, he acknowledged only outdated, anecdotal faults related to Telstra, disregarding the pressing ongoing problems. Had he been informed of the significant 120,000 unresolved faults within Telstra, he might have prompted his technical consultants to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the validity of my ongoing telephone fault complaints.

This situation raises a critical inquiry: did the 120,000 COT-type customers across Australia, as referenced in Falsification Report File No/8, only experience some of the phone problems raised by the COT Cases? Could some of those 120,000 COT type-phone complaints have been refuted for billing claims as well as the phone faults that had caused the billing problems, making those cases two-fold complaints? These challenges may indeed be linked to problems associated with the Ericsson AXE telephone exchange, which is currently under scrutiny by AUSTEL, alongside concerns regarding CAN and AXE (as documented in (Falsification Report File No/8).

Additionally, the two letters dated April 8 and 9, 1994, from Telstra's General Manager to AUSTEL's Robin Davey were mishandled, reflecting a troubling disregard for public welfare. The concealment of the number of individuals affected by these faults not only caused significant personal distress but also led to widespread financial hardship. While households faced overcharging for phone calls, this was merely the surface issue; numerous businesses among the 120,000 COT-type customers experienced lost calls, ultimately contributing to bankruptcies, as evidenced by the twelve COT cases currently in arbitration. It is imperative to acknowledge the seriousness of these issues and their profound effects on individuals and families.

The type of corroded copper wire that I, along with approximately 120,000 other COT-type Australian citizens, experienced reflects the serious shortcomings in the government's investigation of our claims. My concerns, including those related to the lack of action from the government regulator AUSTEL (now ACMA), were warranted, especially given that the arbitrator and Telstra did not correctly address my billing claims during the arbitration process. This situation highlights the significant issues within Australia's copper network, as documented in sources like Delimiter’s "Worst of the worst: Photos of Australia’s copper network | Delimiter. The ongoing telephone problems we face are inexcusable.

Ongoing telephone problems

In the world of political and media misinformation that is attached to the NBN, there is one important issue that hasn’t been fully addressed – Did Australia’s copper network meet the original mandatory government regulatory requirements when the government privatised Telstra? When the COT arbitrator was officially provided (in my case) nine separate sworn Telstra witness statements that my service was now up to network standard i.e.; no more ongoing telephone problems were these nine sworn statements made under oath true or false.

If this question is answered honestly, it would not only directly affect billions of dollars in Commonwealth spending but also mean the arbitrator hearing my cases was lied to so that Telstra could minimise their liability towards me. As seen from the following exhibit, my phone problems continued for eleven years after the arbitrator found in favour of Telstra, i.e. they had now fixed their network.

23 June 2015: Had the arbitrator appointed to assess my arbitration claims correctly investigated ALL of my submitted evidence he would have had to value my claim as an ongoing problem NOT a past problem as his final award shows. It is clear from the following link dated > Unions raise doubts over Telstra's copper network; workers using ... that when reading in conjunction with Can We Fix The Can which was released in March 1994, these faults copper-wire network faults have been in existence for more than 24-years.

9 November 2017: Sadly, many Australians in rural Australia can only access a second-rate NBN. This didn’t have to be the case: had the Australian government ensured the arbitration process it endorsed to investigate the COT cases’ claims of ongoing telephone problems was conducted transparently, it could have used our evidence to start fixing the problems we uncovered in 1993/94. This news article https://theconversation.com/the-accc-investigation-into-the-nbn-will-be-useful-but-its-too-little-too-late-87095 and absentjustice.com/Introduction again shows that the COT Cases claims of ailing copperwire network was more than valid.

Almost two decades after this cover-up had been executed, with the government spin doctors successfully branding my claims as frivolous and me as a vexatious litigant, I have been left the government stopped financing the roll-out of the National Broadband Network (NBN), which still utilises part of the existing, seriously degraded copper network. In fact, the “… state of the copper network is considerably worse than expected, leading to extensive work beyond the node,” say leaked documents.

28 April 2018: This ABC news article regarding the NBN see >NBN boss blames Government's reliance on copper for slow ... needs to be read in conjunction with my own story because had these lies told under oath by so many Telstra employees had not occurred then the government would have been in a better position to evaluate just how bad the copper-wire Customer Access Network (CAN) really was just 4-years ago.

Sadly, many Australians living in rural Australia can only access a second-rate NBN. This didn’t have to be the case: if the Australian Government had ensured the arbitration process they endorsed to investigate the COT cases’ claims of ongoing communication problems had been conducted lawfully.

If only the arbitrator had been shown these photos before he handed down his findings

Protecting the dilapidated copper wire network.

The following links Corruption in Arbitration, and Tampering With Evidence show corruption within the seat of arbitration in Australia was rampant during the 1990s.

When Senator Len Harris (One Nation) met with me and several other COT claimants eight years after our arbitrations had failed to fix our phone problems, I provided documented information to Senator Len Harris regarding the problems I experienced prior to my arbitration in 1994, during my arbitration and beyond my arbitration.

It was clear from the information I provided Senator Len Harris that others in my region and around Australia was still having to contend with, including the business still being connected to the Telstra network via a single pair of wires. Senator Harris is extremely shocked at this information and prepares a press release for the following day, on behalf of the COTs. It was significantly censored before it was released, showing just how much power Telstra could wield, as part of their strategy, to downplay the COT claimant’s valid claims.

Please note the [Alston] Senator Harris was referring to in his media release was Senator Richard Alston (Minister for Communications). The latter, along with the government, concealed from the public and Telstra shareholders how poor the infrastructure was before selling it off.

On 14 November 2002, Senator Len Harris sent out his media release entitled Alston Praying For Continued Drought.

“In other words, sell the whole shooting bag before it rains and let someone else worry about fixing it. …”

“In light of evidence presented by the Communications Electrical Plumbing Union to a senate inquiry then to the Estens inquiry, other court submissions and a large dose of anecdotal evidence from Telstra employees, there seems no doubt the copper and lead network could implode with the onset of rain.”

“Numerous reports from regional areas that have recently received rainfall, reveal the subscriber fault rate has doubled and tripled due to lack of proper maintenance, faulty materials and understaffing. …

Faulty materials such as Hi Gel 3M 442, that has corroded copper joints

Contractors cutting corners with cable installation

Management giving capital works an economic priority order for replacing faulty cables and equipment i.e. those exchange areas that produce the most profit given priority for repair or replacement. This process could preclude most country areas. …”

“In city and country telephone exchange areas, low gas alarms, sometimes 200 or more a day, are sending technicians in a scurry from exchanges to manholes across the city or country roads and back. …”

“According to the union the CAN or Customer Access Network (customer land lines) accounts for 50 to 60 per cent of Telstra’s fixed costs, ie maintenance bill, but generates the lowest rate of return. …”

“Some industry analysts have placed the capital expenditure to replace the aging lead and faulty copper network in the hundreds of millions to perhaps the billion-dollar range. …”

“Estens, in recommendations 2.7 and 4.2, has clearly identified problems with the pair gain system, that allows multiple calls on a single pair of wires. It provides a good financial return for Telstra but is unfair on customers and repairmen.” (GS-CAV Exhibit 410-a to 447 - See GS-CAV 415-A)

This media release, by a Senator, prepared to tell the truth about the whole story, page after page, and not the story the administrators of the COT arbitrations would have preferred to see released because the truth would show they allowed Telstra to:-

delete relevant information from documents legally requested under FOI by the COT claimants;
hide their defective network faults in flawed defence documents such as the BCI test results and
use the manufactured TF200 EXICOM report to support their defence.

These actions have now brought me to where I am today. The arbitration did not fix my ongoing telephone problems, as the following caption shows.

In November 2002, shallow installed wiring was located by Telstra and the new owners. When Telstra tested the first telephone service for the first time, they did so on 29 September 1994, when their testing process had to be abandoned without any testing. Even the arbitration consultant David Reid (Lane Telecommunications Pty Ltd) and Telstra's Peter Gamble refused to test the service on 6 April 1995 even though the arbitrator officially requested them to do that testing as part of the on-site arbitration visit.

Shallow wiring across Australia

TELSTRA - FILE - NOTES

Telstra’s file notes dated 16 October 2002: FOI folio 100264, concerns the new owner of my business, Mr Lewis’ was having ongoing phone problems and had contacted his local Member of Parliament

“Customer has contacted MP again re service as he is not receiving calls on message bank or *10#. Customer is aware previous owner of business also had problems with service [sic]. Customer said he was told by Telstra that there was a problem in his exchange.” ( AS-CAV Exhibit 282 to 323 - See AS-CAV 289)

18th October 2002: Telstra FOI folio 100266 re the Lewis phone problems says:-

“The TIO have now raised a Level 1 complaint on behalf of Mr & Mrs Lewis. The TIO have specifically mentioned in their correspondence that the TIO have previously investigated a number of complaints raised by Alan Smith the previous account holder for this service.” ( AS-CAV Exhibit 282 to 323 - See AS-CAV 290)

8th November 2002: This Portland Observer newspaper article is headed: “Holiday camp still plagued by phone and fax problems”, and says:-

“The telecommunications problems which plagued former Cape Bridgewater Holiday Camp operator Alan Smith continued to beset current owner Darren Lewis.” (GS-CAV Exhibit 410-a to 447 - See GS-CAV 414)

Although my phone problems began in 1988, it is now believed many of the phone and fax problems that occurred, at least from 1991 on, were caused by moisture and were exacerbated by heavy rainfalls in the area. Cape Bridgewater faces the Southern Ocean and has always had a moisture problem. This was not taken into account nor discussed in any of the technical findings of the arbitrator or his Technical Resource Unit, even though I included this information in his submissions.

The above statements made by Senator Len Harris and Telstra's file notes have in common that they are discussing phone problems that have been ongoing for years.

It will be apparent to the reader if they click on the caption of Senator Len Harris they will learn Senator Harris was indeed a man who was concerned about Telstra's ailing network and the fact that the government was selling Telstra when the product they were selling was not Fit For Purpose.

illegally blanked out

On 25 July 2002, Senator Len Harris travelled from Cairns in Queensland (a trip that took more than seven hours) to meet four other COTs and me in Melbourne in an attempt to ensure our claims of discrimination against the Commonwealth were fully investigated. He was appalled that 16 Australian citizens were so badly discriminated against by the then-coalition government, despite a Senate estimates committee working party being established to investigate all 21 COT-type claims against Telstra.

Senator Harris read Senator Alan Eggleston’s 9 August 2001 letter warning me that, if I disclosed the in-camera Hansard records (supporting my claims that 16 Australian citizens were discriminated against in the most deplorable manner), then I would be held in contempt of the Senate and risk jail. Senator Harris was very upset, to say the least.

At a press conference the next day, Senator Harris aimed questions at the chief of staff to the Hon. Senator Richard Alston, Minister for Communications. He asked:

“Through the following questions, the media event will address serious issues related to Telstra’s unlawful withholding of documents from claimants, during litigation."

"Why didn’t the present government correctly address Telstra’s serious and unlawful conduct of withholding discovery and/or Freedom of Information (FOI) documents before the T2 float?"

"Why has the Federal government allowed five Australians (from a list of twenty-one) to be granted access to some of the Telstra discovery documents they needed to support their claims against Telstra, but denied the same rights to the other sixteen?"

"Why has the Federal Government ignored clear evidence that Telstra withheld many documents from a claimant during litigation?"

"Why has the Federal Government ignored evidence that, among those documents Telstra did supply, many were altered or delivered with sections illegally blanked out?”.

Bad bureaucrats and the establishment

The fact that the previous Arbitration Project Manager is currently in 2022 running two arbitration centres around the globe, one in Melbourne and the other in Hong Kong, shows that corruption and wrongdoings can be profitable if the bad bureaucrat is protected by an acomplice.

Chapter 4 The New Owners Tell Their Story

Chapter 4 explores the perspective of new owners of my business bravely confronting the establishment, offering unique insights into systemic challenges