Letter from the Irish Red Cross

Thirdfox

Did anyone else get this? I was a donator to the IRC until the scandal online (Noel's blog?) and in the media came to light.

I sent them an email detailing my queries and asking for further information - no reply was given and I cancelled my direct debit (I've since started with Medecins sans Frontiers).

But I got a letter in the post today from a Donal Forde? basically asking me to come back and offering me a 6 month money back guarantee if I wasn't happy with how they perform going forward... Though I'd have been much happier if they responded to my original email. They're too late for this year's charity allocation - but if they do clean up their act I might consider them for next year's budget.

Anyone else get this?

Oscail

Yes I got one of those mailings as well. All their donors got it.

You should see the email sent to IRC local members at branch level from their Head of Fundraising just before the donor mail was issued. It makes light of the scandal involving their secret Tipperary Bank Account and even cracks a joke about it. It was posted on Noel Wardick's blog http://governancereformatirishredcross.blogspot.com

This mailing you got is all spin. The Irish Red Cross has not cleaned up its act. Have you see in recent media articles on them in the Sunday Times 3rd July, Sunday Indo article 17th July and the adjournment debate in the Dail on the 29th June??? I think if you get a chance to read these you will know all is the same at the Irish Red Cross. In the Dail on 29th July Minister Shatter publicly criticised the Board for not replacing long serving members and for not producing its 2009 and 2010 Annual Reports. He wrote to Irish Red Cross on 16th May asking them to do so. 12 days later at their Board meeting they re-appointed all their long serving members including the primary power broker, their Vice Chairman (the man behind the secret Tipp bank account). He was re-appointed for the 21st year in a row!!! And still the Irish Red Cross tell everyone they are reforming. Its a joke. The same people are the real bosses. No-one was held to account for the Tiperary money, Noel Wardick still remains fired even though IRC has admitted everything he said was correct. What about the €600k Haiti money spent in Ireland? Why arent they returning that money to the Haiti fund? What about their secret and undeclared €7 million property portfolio that the external auditors have stated in writing in their accounts breaches Standard Accounting Practice because they have failed to declare them as income and assets in their accounts. These properties were donated by people who have died and Irish Red Cross has failed to declare them or record them and no-one knows what they are being used for and who is paying rent, earnng rent etc etc. A pure scandal.

Its your call but Medicien Sans Frontiers dont have these problems so personally I would stick with them!

Cherry Blossom Girl

Oscail wrote: »

Yes I got one of those mailings as well. All their donors got it.

You should see the email sent to IRC local members at branch level from their Head of Fundraising just before the donor mail was issued. It makes light of the scandal involving their secret Tipperary Bank Account and even cracks a joke about it. It was posted on Noel Wardick's blog http://governancereformatirishredcross.blogspot.com

This mailing you got is all spin. The Irish Red Cross has not cleaned up its act. Have you see in recent media articles on them in the Sunday Times 3rd July, Sunday Indo article 17th July and the adjournment debate in the Dail on the 29th June??? I think if you get a chance to read these you will know all is the same at the Irish Red Cross. In the Dail on 29th July Minister Shatter publicly criticised the Board for not replacing long serving members and for not producing its 2009 and 2010 Annual Reports. He wrote to Irish Red Cross on 16th May asking them to do so. 12 days later at their Board meeting they re-appointed all their long serving members including the primary power broker, their Vice Chairman (the man behind the secret Tipp bank account). He was re-appointed for the 21st year in a row!!! And still the Irish Red Cross tell everyone they are reforming. Its a joke. The same people are the real bosses. No-one was held to account for the Tiperary money, Noel Wardick still remains fired even though IRC has admitted everything he said was correct. What about the €600k Haiti money spent in Ireland? Why arent they returning that money to the Haiti fund? What about their secret and undeclared €7 million property portfolio that the external auditors have stated in writing in their accounts breaches Standard Accounting Practice because they have failed to declare them as income and assets in their accounts. These properties were donated by people who have died and Irish Red Cross has failed to declare them or record them and no-one knows what they are being used for and who is paying rent, earnng rent etc etc. A pure scandal.

Its your call but Medicien Sans Frontiers dont have these problems so personally I would stick with them!

Could you link to the post containing the email, I cant seem to find it on the blog.

Della Digby

Thirdfox wrote: »

Did anyone else get this? I was a donator to the IRC until the scandal online (Noel's blog?) and in the media came to light.

I sent them an email detailing my queries and asking for further information - no reply was given and I cancelled my direct debit (I've since started with Medecins sans Frontiers).

But I got a letter in the post today from a Donal Forde? basically asking me to come back and offering me a 6 month money back guarantee if I wasn't happy with how they perform going forward... Though I'd have been much happier if they responded to my original email. They're too late for this year's charity allocation - but if they do clean up their act I might consider them for next year's budget.

Anyone else get this?

The Irish Red Cross have not cleaned up their act if anything it has got worse. They recently put forward new rule changes which allow all Board members to sit on the committee for life, they did make changes to the management committee that they could only sit for 6 years, but this is only valid if someone runs against a person. So technically a person could sit for life on this committee also.
During the Haiti Appeal they put 600k into their General fund saying that the donors actually meant it to be used in Ireland.

If you do want to give to the Red Cross make sure the cheque is made out to the International Federation of the Red Cross, then they won't be able to either hide or not use it.

Count Dooku

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/red-cross-says-sorry-for-euro163000-tsunami-cash-error-2829467.html

Commenting on calls for an external investigation, the statement said: "Perhaps we could have done something like this." But it adds: "There seems little gain in doing so now."

The Red Cross also confirms that a board member was a signatory to the Tipperary account, which, it says, "clearly does not look good -- but something not looking good isn't in itself a reason someone should resign."

Commenting on blog claims that €600,000 raised for Haiti had been "kept back", it speculated that this accusation may have arisen from a misunderstanding around "unattributable donations"

i.e. fire everybody who is telling truth, keep everybody who is not doing job properly and do not let public know what is happening inside

Oscail

Dear Bright Eyes,

Link below. Go to comment 7 I think.

http://governancereformatirishredcross.blogspot.com/2011/07/minister-shatter-criticises-irish-red.html#comments

I see an article in Irish Independent today 23rd July. How the Irish Red Cross Vice Chairman is still in place is now beyond a mystery and trying to blame staff for his decision to keep a large amount of money secret from head office is just disgusting and amounts to the lowest of the low. Real scrapping the barrell stuff by Irish Red Cross.

All other aid agencies focusing on Somalia. Irish Red Cross focusing on spin and covering its backside despite all the evidence that they have serious questions to answer and heads need to roll. The You Tube video made by the ex AIB banker is plain and simple narcissistic and even more so when we see what is happening in east Africa

Oscail

Below is link to today's Independent article. Trying to apportion any of this on staff or a lack of staff is sickening. The Vice Chairman needs to be told to resign immediately. Donal Forde, CEO, should know full well staff had nothing to do with this and the staff member who demanded the matter be investigated was fired for his troubles.

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/red-cross-says-sorry-for-euro163000-tsunami-cash-error-2829467.html

Count Dooku

Plum job at Red Cross for banker

Despite paying grants, Minister kept in dark on ex-AIB man's €95k-a-year role

Monopoly for charity allows them ignore all criticism and public don't have any control over IRC

Della Digby

Count Dooku wrote: »

Plum job at Red Cross for banker

Monopoly for charity allows them ignore all criticism and public don't have any control over IRC

What is going on, 95k to run a voluntary organisation. Is it any wonder they are in financial difficulties. I am aghast that Donal Forde would fall into the trap of following the line "Its a staff problem" This is well into the realm of rightfull legal action by staff. If staff in Merrion Square allow themselves to be blamed for what Lawor did in putting the 162k away in a secret bank account then they deserve all they get.

At least they now admit taking the 600k out of the Haiti Appeal, but of course it is all a big mistake.

Mr Noel Wardick is now well and truly vindicated. The Chairman of the Irish Red Cross should be at Noel Wardicks feet asking for forgiveness. They now fully admit Noel Wardick was correct and that they ignored his attempts to have the wrong doing addressed, but the Red Cross has the answer for anyone who challenges the authority of the Gods. SACKING !
Well done Noel ! Well done Noel !

running nowhere

There have been a number of calls on the Irish Red Cross Governance Reform Blog to have the Gardai investigate the Society. Without a doubt an external, fully independent investigation is warranted.
The reasons for such an investigation are well and truly documented at this stage. It would certainly appear a Garda investigation into wrongdoing may also be warranted. Apart from the "Father Ted" style money "resting in a Tipperary bank account" (unaccounted for for 4 years) another extremely suspicious practice is the Irish Red Cross refusing to account for the numerous properties left as donations to the Society by people in their wills. These properties are not accounted for in the society's accounts as either assets or income. Figures of a 7 million euro property portfolio have been suggested, obviously drastically reduced in value now. The society's auditors have repeatedly flagged this practice as contrary to standard accounting practices.
Now as most of these properties are most likely to be houses, it is not a far stretch of the imagination to say that they were either sold or are rented. So where are the proceeds of the sales? or who is benefitting from the rental income? There is absolutely no record of these properties in the society's accounts!! The Red Cross may be using these properties for other purposes that do not generate income but irrespective they must be recorded as assets.
For a donor to leave their property to the Irish Red Cross in their will is an enormous act of generosity. As usual the Irish Red Cross behaves in such a contemptible manner that no record of that good will exists anywhere nor is it recognised, certainly not openly. In the complete lack of transparency one can only assume that these properties are not being used in the manner the donors intended, ie for the benefit of the society and the communities they serve, but rather alternative gains are being scrupulously achieved from the properties for others.
Based on the deplorable track record of the Irish Red Cross to date it is very difficult not to assume the worst. I hope I am mistaken, but maybe only a Garda investigation can really get to the bottom of this.
As I understand it the Gardai can only investigate a complaint, so I suppose a complaint needs to be made in the first instance.....

murphaph

I've cancelled my (modest) IRC standing order this morning. Wanted to give them a bit of time to get their act together but they've failed. I'll seek out a reputable charity to donate to in future. Any suggestions?

SeanW

I have a question about this letter - I got something from them a couple of weeks ago about the scandal, but I never made any donations to the Irish Red Cross, though I did give to the Japanese Red Cross in relation to the March earthquake and the devastation it caused out there in Japan. Would THAT have got me onto the IRC's mailing list?

Oscail

SeanW: Yes that would have got you on their mailing list if your donation went through Irish Red Cross. If you sent directly to Japanese Red Cross then its not the reason IRC has your contact details so not sure how they would have got them. Irish Red Cross is desparate for money and have seen their donations and regular donors plummet since all the revelations have come to light. Their continued attempts to excuse the inexcusable actions of certain board members is deplorable and until these people are thrown out of office I would be very hesitant in giving them a penny. If giving to the Red Cross I would give to the British Red Cross or the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Geneva. Otherwise Concern, Trocaire and Oxfam Ireland all have excellent reputations.

Re the Garda investigation we can only hope someone will make a formal complaint.

goat2

Oscail wrote: »

Dear Bright Eyes,

Link below. Go to comment 7 I think.

http://governancereformatirishredcross.blogspot.com/2011/07/minister-shatter-criticises-irish-red.html#comments

I see an article in Irish Independent today 23rd July. How the Irish Red Cross Vice Chairman is still in place is now beyond a mystery and trying to blame staff for his decision to keep a large amount of money secret from head office is just disgusting and amounts to the lowest of the low. Real scrapping the barrell stuff by Irish Red Cross.

All other aid agencies focusing on Somalia. Irish Red Cross focusing on spin and covering its backside despite all the evidence that they have serious questions to answer and heads need to roll. The You Tube video made by the ex AIB banker is plain and simple narcissistic and even more so when we see what is happening in east Africa

could someone explain, why did they not declare this large amount to head office, what were they going to do with it,

Oscail

There is no justifiable reason why the Vice Chairman kept this bank account secret and undisclosed to head office. There is also no justifiable reason why the money was not not forwarded to IRC head office in Dublin. That is the policy for all branches. One can only guess what were the long term intentions regarding this money but thankfully the individual was caught and forced to hand over the money. Many people have views on what were the plans for this money but public stating them is not possible without proof.

goat2

i thought that when an organisation had alot of different monies coming in, that there would be one main account that all the money could be lodged in, so as to keep up to date with what they had, but with accounts in different banks it make it more complicated, or, had they forgotten that they had this in the bank

Godge

murphaph wrote: »

I've cancelled my (modest) IRC standing order this morning. Wanted to give them a bit of time to get their act together but they've failed. I'll seek out a reputable charity to donate to in future. Any suggestions?

I have lost a lot of belief in institutionalised charities. Whether it is Trocaire or Concern spending my money lobbying the government, making ads for the TV or on PR, or the likes of the Red Cross where we don't know where the money is spent, it is difficult.

I find it better to think local, to do voluntary work for the school, football team, scout group in my local area, to donate time to them. If you don't have time, rather than donating money, better to give a set of footballs or hurleys, a computer for the school etc. so you know where your money is going.

goat2

Godge wrote: »

I have lost a lot of belief in institutionalised charities. Whether it is Trocaire or Concern spending my money lobbying the government, making ads for the TV or on PR, or the likes of the Red Cross where we don't know where the money is spent, it is difficult.

I find it better to think local, to do voluntary work for the school, football team, scout group in my local area, to donate time to them. If you don't have time, rather than donating money, better to give a set of footballs or hurleys, a computer for the school etc. so you know where your money is going.

that is a very good idea, i have always collected for the heart foundation, cancer, aware, and like you i think i also have done my bit,

SeanW

Oscail wrote: »

SeanW: Yes that would have got you on their mailing list if your donation went through Irish Red Cross. If you sent directly to Japanese Red Cross then its not the reason IRC has your contact details so not sure how they would have got them.

Thanks Oscail but I'm pretty sure that I gave the money directly to the Japanese Red Cross (online). I have no idea why I got that letter for the simple reason that I never gave the Irish Red Cross anything, and never contacted them in any way, IIRC.

goat2 wrote: »

could someone explain, why did they not declare this large amount to head office, what were they going to do with it,

Your guess is as good as anyones, it seems.

Zorbas

Godge wrote: »

I have lost a lot of belief in institutionalised charities. Whether it is Trocaire or Concern spending my money lobbying the government, making ads for the TV or on PR, or the likes of the Red Cross where we don't know where the money is spent, it is difficult."

Having worked in disasters and development for nearly 3 decades in Africa and Asia, I have still the same difficulty in finding an efficient, effective and accountable charity to support.
Small "altruistic" charities in developing countries tend towards naivety and a vulnerability to getting ripped off by the smart local educated elite. Some such charities of course do good work and at often low cost but all too often end up;- getting drawn into local politics, favouring selective clans/ tribes, being thwarted by insecurity the status/ recognition / legality to get things done.
Larger charities / agencies invariably are bloated, bureaucratic, unaccountable institutions with clever fundraising and PR and often lacking independence because of reliance or government or religiouse support. Whilst essential in delivering disaster relief, they invariably lack developmental / service ability ecause of their make up;- out of touch / contact with the really poor, overly academic and lacking in field experience / credibility, reliance on expensive and often uncaring career employees.
Working exclusively in the field (with the vulnerable), I have never found any small or large relief or development charities / agencies who are either truly results orientated, efficient or accountable. On one occasion when I suggested to a government department to seek more detailed accounting to match their programme reporting, I was summarily dismissed – “we’re all in this together lads”.
The needs are enormous and beyond anything we understand as need in this country but invariably a large % of money contributed is spent by charities in-house or on transport and accommodation while a very small % reaches the needy.
As long as we do not have more robust accountability, policing and accreditation of such charities and agencies, then we will continue to give our meagre funds in the knowledge that much will be wasted. The search goes on.

Oscail

I have reviewed with interest the latest marketing campaign by the Irish Red Cross which to me appears as nothing more than a cynical attempt to actually put these problems behind them without ever addressing them. The "questions and answers" section on their website attempting to explain the recent (and not so recent) shambles is nothing short of insulting to the intelligent Members, Volunteers and Staff of the Irish Red Cross, not to mention the Irish Taxpayer. The problems at the Irish Red Cross cannot be "explained away". I personally suspect many of these problems actually transgress into corporate crime but of course that has not been proved so thats important to note. Time will hopefully tell. I look forward to reviewing the response to the IRC (question and answers) in the recent blog article http://governancereformatirishredcross.blogspot.com

However in the mean time I just wanted to note something curious I noticed today. Usually when I wish to get to this blog I just type in "governancereformatirishredcross" into Google and this blog is usually top of the list, as one would expect as it's quite a unique search title. Today however I noticed that on top of the list is actually a link to the IRC website under the banner "FIND REAL ANSWERS ABOUT THE IRISH RED CROSS" I really thought this was actually quite funny, I figured the IRC are as entitled as anyone to get their story, spin, blurb whatever you want to call it out there. My slight amusement then turned to astonishment when I noticed that this banner had the word "ad" in the top right hand corner. So, I stand to be corrected on this, I am assuming this is actually an ad that the IRC have paid Google to display, linked (again assuming) to any search related to "governancereformatirishredcross". So the IRC have made a failed attempt to sue Google trying to shut down this blog (how much money wasted??)......and now they appear to be paying Google to advertise the Irish Red Cross in any search associated with this blog!!!!!!!!!! The mind boggles.

Oscail

I have reviewed with interest the latest marketing campaign by the Irish Red Cross which to me appears as nothing more than a cynical attempt to actually put these problems behind them without ever addressing them. The "questions and answers" section on their website attempting to explain the recent (and not so recent) shambles is nothing short of insulting to the intelligent Members, Volunteers and Staff of the Irish Red Cross, not to mention the Irish Taxpayer. The problems at the Irish Red Cross cannot be "explained away". I personally suspect many of these problems actually transgress into corporate crime but of course that has not been proved so thats important to note. Time will hopefully tell. I look forward to reviewing the response to the IRC (question and answers) in the recent blog article http://governancereformatirishredcross.blogspot.com

However in the mean time I just wanted to note something curious I noticed today. Usually when I wish to get to this blog I just type in "governancereformatirishredcross" into Google and this blog is usually top of the list, as one would expect as it's quite a unique search title. Today however I noticed that on top of the list is actually a link to the IRC website under the banner "FIND REAL ANSWERS ABOUT THE IRISH RED CROSS" I really thought this was actually quite funny, I figured the IRC are as entitled as anyone to get their story, spin, blurb whatever you want to call it out there. My slight amusement then turned to astonishment when I noticed that this banner had the word "ad" in the top right hand corner. So, I stand to be corrected on this, I am assuming this is actually an ad that the IRC have paid Google to display, linked (again assuming) to any search related to "governancereformatirishredcross". So the IRC have made a failed attempt to sue Google trying to shut down this blog (how much money wasted??)......and now they appear to be paying Google to advertise the Irish Red Cross in any search associated with this blog!!!!!!!!!! The mind boggles.

Oscail

I have reviewed with interest the latest marketing campaign by the Irish Red Cross which to me appears as nothing more than a cynical attempt to actually put these problems behind them without ever addressing them. The "questions and answers" section on their website attempting to explain the recent (and not so recent) shambles is nothing short of insulting to the intelligent Members, Volunteers and Staff of the Irish Red Cross, not to mention the Irish Taxpayer. The problems at the Irish Red Cross cannot be "explained away". I personally suspect many of these problems actually transgress into corporate crime but of course that has not been proved so thats important to note. Time will hopefully tell. I look forward to reviewing the response to the IRC (question and answers) in the recent blog article http://governancereformatirishredcross.blogspot.com

However in the mean time I just wanted to note something curious I noticed today. Usually when I wish to get to this blog I just type in "governancereformatirishredcross" into Google and this blog is usually top of the list, as one would expect as it's quite a unique search title. Today however I noticed that on top of the list is actually a link to the IRC website under the banner "FIND REAL ANSWERS ABOUT THE IRISH RED CROSS" I really thought this was actually quite funny, I figured the IRC are as entitled as anyone to get their story, spin, blurb whatever you want to call it out there. My slight amusement then turned to astonishment when I noticed that this banner had the word "ad" in the top right hand corner. So, I stand to be corrected on this, I am assuming this is actually an ad that the IRC have paid Google to display, linked (again assuming) to any search related to "governancereformatirishredcross". So the IRC have made a failed attempt to sue Google trying to shut down this blog (how much money wasted??)......and now they appear to be paying Google to advertise the Irish Red Cross in any search associated with this blog!!!!!!!!!! The mind boggles.

Oscail

Apologies for posting above article 3 times. Not sure how it happened but was attempting to edit the slight typo in the title. Not sure how to remove the multiple posts so again, apologies.

karunadaka

Hi Oscail - Ronan from the Red Cross here. Google provides adwords to charities for free, so no donors money is being spent on it in the way you are suggesting.

And no one is attempting to wash away the mistakes of the past - precisely the opposite. Our response to many valid and some invalid criticisms of a former employee criticisms, and the changes we are making, can be found here: http://www.redcross.ie/corporate_site/about_us/governance_policies_and_annual_reports/response_to_criticisms

If there are issues we havn't addressed, then let us know at communications@redcross.ie

Zorbas

karunadaka wrote: »

Hi Oscail - Ronan from the Red Cross here. Google provides adwords to charities for free, so no donors money is being spent on it in the way you are suggesting.

And no one is attempting to wash away the mistakes of the past - precisely the opposite. Our response to many valid and some invalid criticisms of a former employee criticisms, and the changes we are making, can be found here: http://www.redcross.ie/corporate_site/about_us/governance_policies_and_annual_reports/response_to_criticisms

If there are issues we havn't addressed, then let us know at communications@redcross.ie

Ronan, You know very well that the link you mention above does not answer the critisms and it does appear that you and IRC are not seriously engaging with the issues.
Let us assume that IRC has a genuine desire to dialogue with its detractors and to counter the bad publicity which is currently widespread. If so, IRC would be well advised to explain or counter allegations of mismanagement and lack of accountability through the holding of nationally advertised public meetings.
Public meeting would be an opportunity for IRC to chart out its future and to explain its past actions as well as clear up misunderstandings on contentious issues such as:-
· Unaudited / unidentified property portfolio.
· Whistleblower firing and miserable human resources record,
· Tipperary emergency appeal funds mystery.
· Questionable governance with continual re-appointments to office.
· Lack of meaningful national action at this time of austerity.
· Unclear separation of governance and management.
IRC must understand that communication is a two-way process and that website Q&A will never adequately address the genuine concerns that threaten its integrity. This blog has clearly shown how the PR answers so far provided by IRC in addressing the issues are at best inadequate and at worst disingenuous.
Only if IRC can be courageous enough to meet face to face with its critics and past supporters / volunteers can confidence be restored and new confidence generated. The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies would surely facilitate such a meeting as an honest broker and at the same time explain how the IRC is or is not in compliance with the Movements regulation and accountability requirements.

karunadaka

Hi Zorbas - I'm afraid I dont agree that it doesn't answer the criticisms. Whether people are happy with and agree with the responses is of course another matter! And naturally communication is a 2-way thing - the responses posted on our website are just that - responses; this is clearly a live and on-going discussion.

As mentioned before, if there are specific issues that people would like a response to, then please do mail us at communications@redcross.ie and we will answer them as best we can.

As for the town hall meeting idea - I happen to think it is a very good one and I will pass the suggestion on.

There is a governance reform process which is still on-going - the Federation in Geneva has been consulted along the way and once it is all finalised I'm confident they will give it their stamp of approval. Breaking the link with the government (the Red Cross was established in 1939 under an act of the Oireachtas) is part of the time it is taking.

I'm off-line now but will check in again in the next couple of days.

running nowhere

Ronan,
The Executive Committee of the Irish Red Cross has failed in their duties. This is absolutely evident. Q&A, town hall meetings, marketing campaigns may be all well and good, however the simple matter remains that absolutely no one has been held accountable for these failings, failings which are suddenly and readily admitted by the Irish Red Cross. I am sick and tired of the endless lack of accountability in this country, from banks to church to politics. The Irish Red Cross is simply another organisation refusing to move on from a bygone era.
Please do not continue to refer to governance reform and consultation with the International Federation (IFRC), this line has been spun for many many years with absolutely no change whatsoever. As for the IFRC I know they are simple exasperated with the IRC, yes they may put their stamp of approval on governance reform proposals but that is unfortunately only an indictment on their lack of backbone in terms of dealing with incompetent national societies.
You refer to breaking the link with the Government; you seem to refer to this link as having been a problem? It is this link that has provided millions upon millions of euro to the Irish Red Cross. However, I am sure the Executive Committee would love to break this link as it would cut off another party who has the temerity to question the Executive Committee.
Ronan please refrain from continuing to produce the same old blurb on behalf of a board who has failed in its duties. It has been the same broken record rubbish for the last 20 years. Please stop insulting the intelligence of the Members, Staff, and Irish Tax Payers.
While you are passing on the idea of a town hall meeting could you please also pass on the idea of the entire Executive Committee being removed for failing in their duties and the idea of an independent external investigation being carried out to identify those responsible for gross negligence relating financial and other matters as already admitted by the Irish Red Cross. You might also pass on the idea that bullying, harassment, intimidation and fear are not admirable policies to use to keep Staff in line for any organisation let alone one which claims to be part of the Red Cross Movement.

Zorbas

Totally agree with Running Nowhere and his/her analysis and frustration which is, I feel sure shared by most of those who would have supported Red Cross in the past. A perfunctory reply or two from Ronan, whose position in IRC remains undeclared, will not fool anyone.
The long awaited and radical reform of IRC is clearly not in process and the stalemate which currently exists needs to be broken:
Those IRC officials and staff who remain from the past are too compromised to be reformist,, those new arrivals including the SG / CEO are recruited by them, are new to the Movement. Perhaps mistakenly the new CEO feels that the tinkering around the edges of the problem is achieving something whilst the status quo at governance level remains in place.
Much hope had been placed in the new Government, however it’s now unclear how far up the priority list is reform and accountability of the IRC. "Breaking linkage with government" as quoted by Ronan of IRC needs explanation to know if this is to affect government oversight.
Some hope had been placed in the International RC/RC (IFRC) because of its history in helping to turn around National Societies in developing countries. It would appear that it is not used to working in the developed world environment and the implied double standards of this modus operandi are unfortunate.
Remarkably the power of public opinion and media criticisms has had little apparent impact on the IRC as evidenced by their half-hearted responses. One wonders how really aware are they about the crisis in confidence in IRC which is widespread in the country.
For those who believe in the Red Cross / Crescent Movement and its Principles, we must continue to flush out the IRC to properly face its critics. IRC cannot hide away forever and I still think that public meetings with the SG and Chairman in attendance could offer a positive way forward.
IRC must know that people feel too strongly to give up on the needed root and branch reform of IRC.
The IRC must wake up to fact that many now feel that the IRC cannot be trusted.
Without Government funding, diversion of ear-marked funding or income from the unaudited property portfolio ; IRC would undoubtedly face the reality of insolvency.
Time is running out. Let us unite in demanding meetings as a first step in calling IRC to account. If IRC are not willing to hold such meetings, then perhaps its time others took the initiative.

goat2

i always saw the red cross as a huge organisation, seeing their ambulances at sports events, and always gave to collections for this organisation,

miju

goat2 wrote: »

i always saw the red cross as a huge organisation, seeing their ambulances at sports events, and always gave to collections for this organisation,

I suppose though the question of this thread is that given all thats gone on would you still give to collections now?

goat2

miju wrote: »

I suppose though the question of this thread is that given all thats gone on would you still give to collections now?

i would like to know the truth in laymans language, and i dont know the whole story

goat2

Originally Posted by miju
I suppose though the question of this thread is that given all thats gone on would you still give to collections now?
Originally Posted by miju
I suppose though the question of this thread is that given all thats gone on would you still give to collections now?
Originally Posted by miju
I suppose though the question of this thread is that given all thats gone on would you still give to collections now?
to answer whether i would give in future, i dont know the full story, was our money being used as we thought and hoped it would be, after all it is our hard earned money, so if anyone has a link to the real story i would love to have it, and then i will decide, but if i find out that not all the monies that were givin to the red cross, for the red cross only, were not fully accounted for, then i will have to rethink,

Fulton Crown

have long felt that there is something very smelly about the finances of big ticket charities.

I dont like the way the employ "chuggers"

I don't like the way they are less than straightforwoard about salaries and expenses.

I dont like the huge salary for the CEO of Rehab

I dont like the way they personalise their costly TV and radio advts.

I dont like the way the Exec of The Irish Red Cross do not resign after a major financial shortcoming is outed.

For these reasons and others I will not be giving any of my hard earned to these organisations.

gmoyne

From: Ronan in the Irish Red Cross

'As for the town hall meeting idea - I happen to think it is a very good one and I will pass the suggestion on'.


Ronan, the idea is already there, you don't need to pass on the suggestion, its part of what normal National Societies do. Read the policies and procedures for national Societies and the regulations agreed by the IFRC over the years.

So if this is a good idea how would you account for my expulsion from a meeting and then told that under Rule 32 that this was a correct action.

Of course Rule 32 which was quoted says no such thing.

Then when I ask for a copy of the written direction given from the Secretary General, Area Secretary and Branch Secretary I am told the Red Cross does not give members information !

The reason I was asked to leave aRed Cross meeting in February 2011 is that some Red Cross members are not comfortable with someone who will face them directly with the truth, as they have nowhere to hide.

When I did eventually get the opportunity to speak in May 2009, not a single word was uttered in defence of the Red Cross and not a single word has been uttered in defence of the allegations made by myself since.

So when you have the opportunity lets all get into a room and we shall see if your truth adds up ! Why will the Red Cross not talk to Noel Wardick, its because they know morally he is 110% right. Why have certain members of the current Executive so intent for the last 20 years to try to shut me up.

The records would show in Red Cross if they had not been destroyed purposely that several attempts were taken to threaten me with Court Action and Expusion, nothing worked. Lucky I kept a copy of all the documents! There are lies and even more lies, and the truth keeps crawling from under the closed doors.

So when the Red Cross stops telling porkies we might all move on to build a decent Red Cross which promotes Humanity for ALL !

Oscail

Dear Ronan,

With the greatest respect to you but you are becoming a farcical character along the lines of Sadam Hussein's infamous spokesperson who became known as Comical Ali. For those who dont recall Comical Ali stood in Baghdad stating that the city would never fall to American forces when suddenly American tanks appeared up the street behind him and the whole thing was caught on camera!!

Ronan, your naivity is truly something to behold. You are risking your professional career by becoming the mouthpiece for a disreputable and disgraced regime at the Irish Red Cross. You must be one of the most gullible individuals I have ever come across. I genuinely feel sorry for you because becoming an apologist for the Irish Red Cross will cause you no end of trauma and pain in time. Rest assured the Irish Red Cross has committed many many wrongs and most sensible thinking people now accept this. The recent calls for police and fraud squad intervention are worth serious consideration.

Everytime you issue your disingenuous and false statements you do untold damage to your personal reputation. You are becoming a highly discredited individual as a result. Initially you were ankle deep in deceit, now you are knee deep. You can still get out but you are sinking fast. Listen to this advice. You did not cause the problems but you are rapidly becoming part of the problem. You have time but not much.

The idea of public meetings is excellent but has been suggested many times in the past. The Irish Red Cross has always refused. As the Blog has reported the Society has failed to hold a national assembly for all its members since 2005. The scheduled ones in 2007 and 2009 were cancelled as reported by the blog. This is a failure of organisational democracy. Please stop your patronising nonsense Ronan that 'the public hearings are a good idea and I will pass on your suggestion'. This is just more of your spin trying to appear genuine and cooperative. If Irish Red Cross is terrified to hold an open meeting of all its members its not going to hold a meeting of the general public. The reason is because the likes of the Vice Chariman and Treasurer and most of the Board will be forced to step down by the general membership and/or the public at any such meeting. The Irish Red Cross has turned into a sorry pathetic dictatorship and you have become their mouthpiece. You are losing all individual credibility.

By the way Google Adwords are provided by Google free of charge for CHARITABLE purposes and should therefore not be used to lie, deceive and spin and to attempt to shut down the excellent and informative blog written by Noel Wardick, the senior manager who Irish Red Cross fired for telling the truth.

Read the Blog for the truth. Its most recent article dismantles the Q&A spin drafted by Irish Red Cross which insults the intelligence of every single person who ever gave money to the Irish Red Cross and is deeply insulting to current and former staff

http://governancereformatirishredcross.blogspot.com

And as for trying to blame the link with government for the Irish Red Cross dysfunction once again Ronan you disgrace yourself. Some of the most determined and honest reform minded board memebrs of Irish Red Cross over the years have been government nominees. They have since the late 1980's been a constant thorn in the side of the Vice Chairman and his cohorts. The Irish Red Cross has always made the lives of these people hell and many of them resigned or just left demoralised, appalled, shocked and disillusioned. Breaking the link with government follows the same strategy that saw Noel Wardick and others fired. Remove all reform minded people, remove anyone who questions the leadership and especially remove any person who tells the truth.

Ronan, you have backed the wrong horse. The Irish Red Cross is an exact mirror image of the Catholic Church...once upon a time you could do what you want and get away with it. Now you cant! That day is gone. You might remain in power but you face oblivion and irrelevance. As someone said to me some time back Irish Red Cross is a by-word for dysfunction, misgovernance, cronyism and abuse of power. Until you remove the individuals responsible especially the Vice Chairman and Treasurer nothing will change. But Ronan you and others are too scared to call for their removal and as a result you are left doing demeaning tasks like preparing disgusting Q&As that few if any believe.

So Comical Ronan, wake up. Dont sacrafice your career defending people who couldnt care one bit about you and who will dump you as soon as you are no longer useful to them. Your five predecessors were very honorable people. They would never have allowed themselves become the mouthpiece for such dishonesty. Sad that you apparently have.

gmoyne

goat2 wrote: »

i would like to know the truth in laymans language, and i dont know the whole story

In lay mans terms the Irish Red Cross of which I am a life member has for over 25 years that I know of has been involved in the long term retention of monies which were destined for overseas Appeals.

When as a member of the National Overseas Committee I and others brought the matter of minute rigging and retaining of monies for several years to the attention of the Executive Committee, our committee was immediately disbanded. They do not appreciate anyone rocking the boat. When the National Financial Director Mr L. White challenged the Executive he was imediately sacked as was Noel Wardick the author of the Blog.

The Irish Red Cross has held onto money that I know of from several Appeals and it is only when the press gets involved as with Armenia and Somalia do they act and transfer the money out of the Country to the Appeal.

I as a member would not give the National Society a single cent. But I would most certainly give the money to the International Red Cross or Federation as I have done on many occasions rather than let the money be used improperly,

goat2

gmoyne --- thank you for that, you are lucky you kept copies of all paperwork that passed through your hands,
i have a question, the monies that was not sent to foreign aid, where was that spent,
as you can see that i am interested in where charity monies go, as i have also collected for charities, and have wondered if the money i collected went to the charity, is it possible that some of it could be going elsewhere. and when i think back, i must have collected loads, as i used to go out a few times of year for different organisatins, like, aware, the heart foundation, cancer research, things that effect most families including my own over the yrs,

gmoyne

goat2 wrote: »

gmoyne --- thank you for that, you are lucky you kept copies of all paperwork that passed through your hands,
i have a question, the monies that was not sent to foreign aid, where was that spent,
as you can see that i am interested in where charity monies go, as i have also collected for charities, and have wondered if the money i collected went to the charity, is it possible that some of it could be going elsewhere. and when i think back, i must have collected loads, as i used to go out a few times of year for different organisatins, like, aware, the heart foundation, cancer research, things that effect most families including my own over the yrs,

That is an excellent question and I have spent many years trying to get an answer. We can rely on one thing and that is during the Haiti Appeal there appears to have been an excess of approx. 600k put into the General fund of the Irish Red Cross. One can only ponder as to the level of funds that went astray this way during other appeals over the years. I do know that during my tenure monies were spent on project designs and such things as expensive consultants and such like that never saw the light of day. monies were also retained and the interest also appears to have been retained.

As with the Tsunami Appeal of which the Vice Chairman of the Society was involved, it appears they have so much money in Tipperary that it was a case of they forgot 162k was sitting there for three years. I believe it was found in a secret audit. Of course the recovery of this money was not voluntary!

The Audited accounts don't give a concise breakdown, but luckily some diligent people I know, kept accurate records over the years so come the time when there is an official investigation there might be more questions than answers for some individuals. As with poker you don't play all you cards!

The Red Cross is a brilliant organisation and it has some wonderful people involved who in it for their own correct reasons, however the management forget that they are not the Red Cross they are only as good as the members they represent !

goat2

gmoyne wrote: »

That is an excellent question and I have spent many years trying to get an answer. We can rely on one thing and that is during the Haiti Appeal there appears to have been an excess of approx. 600k put into the General fund of the Irish Red Cross. One can only ponder as to the level of funds that went astray this way during other appeals over the years. I do know that during my tenure monies were spent on project designs and such things as expensive consultants and such like that never saw the light of day. monies were also retained and the interest also appears to have been retained.

As with the Tsunami Appeal of which the Vice Chairman of the Society was involved, it appears they have so much money in Tipperary that it was a case of they forgot 162k was sitting there for three years. I believe it was found in a secret audit. Of course the recovery of this money was not voluntary!

The Audited accounts don't give a concise breakdown, but luckily some diligent people I know, kept accurate records over the years so come the time when there is an official investigation there might be more questions than answers for some individuals. As with poker you don't play all you cards!

The Red Cross is a brilliant organisation and it has some wonderful people involved who in it for their own correct reasons, however the management forget that they are not the Red Cross they are only as good as the members they represent !

by the recovery of the money not being voluntary, did someone think it was theirs to keep,
tipperary being your average county, how did it stay hidden for three yrs, as we have to hand up our tax returns every year, does that mean the tax man was not made aware of this also

gmoyne

goat2 wrote: »

by the recovery of the money not being voluntary, did someone think it was theirs to keep,
tipperary being your average county, how did it stay hidden for three yrs, as we have to hand up our tax returns every year, does that mean the tax man was not made aware of this also

there are no tax implications for Charities as they are exempt from tax. however the explanations given really beggar belief. They are detailed on the blog:
http://governancereformatirishredcross.blogspot.com/

This however, is not a unique event for the Irish Red Cross. When why was on the overseas Committee we discovered monies most people couldn't even remember when the appeal was held. They came up with all sorts of excuses then also. That was before they decided we were asking too many questions and out the door we went or should I say pushed! The minute rigging was the best laugh. They were really innovative, that is until I recorded a few meetings and that persuaded the bods that I had to go !

gmoyne

You actually could not make this all up if you tried ! Its seriously twisted.

But sure everything is grand now as that was in the past. You are just weird if you keep bringing up the past even if the same people who were the problem then, are still the problem now! Funny how life is in this Country ! It actually doesn't matter how bad you are, all you have to do is call the excuse Dept. and way you go till the next time.

starfish30

'rested in a special account' - seriously... is it father Ted we are dealing with here??

Zorbas

starfish30 wrote: »

'rested in a special account' - seriously... is it father Ted we are dealing with here??

Every week that passes adds to the incredulity that Irish Red Cross are still operating and that the Government or the International Red Federation of the Red Cross or the ICRC have not acted.
You would think that the Government would follow up on the questions around the credibility of one of its major aid channels or follow-up on the whistle-blower case.
You would expect that the International Red Cross (IFRC & ICRC) would suspend membership of IRC until there is evidence of minimum compliance with the statutes and regulations agreed by the membership over the years.
Had always understood that we in Ireland were intolerant of corruption but recent events support the opposite.

gmoyne

Zorbas wrote: »

Every week that passes adds to the incredulity that Irish Red Cross are still operating and that the Government or the International Red Federation of the Red Cross or the ICRC have not acted.
You would think that the Government would follow up on the questions around the credibility of one of its major aid channels or follow-up on the whistle-blower case.
You would expect that the International Red Cross (IFRC & ICRC) would suspend membership of IRC until there is evidence of minimum compliance with the statutes and regulations agreed by the membership over the years.
Had always understood that we in Ireland were intolerant of corruption but recent events support the opposite.

There are regulations which are mandatory for the recognition of National Societies and the International Federation of the Red Cross can sanction National Societies for failure to comply with this legislation. The Irish Red Cross has not complied with many aspects for more years than one can remember. One such rule is the compliance with Resolutions of the International Conference and of the Council of Delegates. Few if any Central Council members know any thing about this. The Irish Red Cross management just ignore everything to do with compliance. The Federation are wimps and could not really care about this third world Country on the peripherals of Europe. Well, that has changed somewhat since the blog began to raise awareness of the realities ! Geneva is just hoping it all will go away !

When the Red Cross found that they could not sue Google in the USA things started to happen, but they still wish it would all go away especially as Google is a big donor ! Maybe the eighty odd thousand people reading the Blog might be making the difference we will see.

goat2

gmoyne wrote: »

there are no tax implications for Charities as they are exempt from tax. however the explanations given really beggar belief. They are detailed on the blog:
http://governancereformatirishredcross.blogspot.com/

This however, is not a unique event for the Irish Red Cross. When why was on the overseas Committee we discovered monies most people couldn't even remember when the appeal was held. They came up with all sorts of excuses then also. That was before they decided we were asking too many questions and out the door we went or should I say pushed! The minute rigging was the best laugh. They were really innovative, that is until I recorded a few meetings and that persuaded the bods that I had to go !

monies that were given for the asian disaster, were kept in a bank account in this country, what good was it to the people who it was given for and when they most needed in a bank here,
who does this organisation answer to, are there rules and regulations they must follow, because the self employed in this country have to account for every penny they earn and spend, i would expect the charities to do the same, for me personally who collected for charities, and have been in habit of putting change in collection boxes, i am very disappointed, i thought the money went to the needy asap,

gmoyne

goat2 wrote: »

monies that were given for the asian disaster, were kept in a bank account in this country, what good was it to the people who it was given for and when they most needed in a bank here,
who does this organisation answer to, are there rules and regulations they must follow, because the self employed in this country have to account for every penny they earn and spend, i would expect the charities to do the same, for me personally who collected for charities, and have been in habit of putting change in collection boxes, i am very disappointed, i thought the money went to the needy asap,

All I can say is the behaviour of the Red Cross in Ireland is in no way reflective of the good work that is carried out by the Red Cross in war torn countries.

There has been a systemic governance meltdown within the Irish Red Cross which involves a small number of people, who have been involved in the hiding of money, the retention of money, and the harassment of members and staff. They control by threat and innuendo its the perfect example of nepotism . They regard themselves as the untouchables who are accountable to no one not even the minister of Defense who funds them. Read all about it on the Blog that is the real truth of what is going on now !http://governancereformatirishredcross.blogspot.com/

Della Digby

The Government will be back from Holidays next month, will Alan Shatter take all the bull he gets from the management of Red Cross as gospel or will he take the correct approach and demand an immediate investigation to the spending of state money by the Red Cross. If we hear one more time the same rhetoric 'The Government cannot cannot act against Mr Lawlor and co.' we will scream. Its the nations money why are we not allowed to know how its being misused?

I don't see too many fancy 4 x 4 being shipped out to the people of Somalia ...... What do we need them here for? Get them all on bikes ! If we need ambulances use the HSE and pay them !

goat2

Della Digby wrote: »

The Government will be back from Holidays next month, will Alan Shatter take all the bull he gets from the management of Red Cross as gospel or will he take the correct approach and demand an immediate investigation to the spending of state money by the Red Cross. If we hear one more time the same rhetoric 'The Government cannot cannot act against Mr Lawlor and co.' we will scream. Its the nations money why are we not allowed to know how its being misused?

I don't see too many fancy 4 x 4 being shipped out to the people of Somalia ...... What do we need them here for? Get them all on bikes ! If we need ambulances use the HSE and pay them !

are there people heading the red cross who happen to be related to people in government, and if so who are they, and who in government are they related to, or are they friends,
Also how is it that now you do not see hse ambulances anymore at sprots events, while you will see the red cross, why,

anymore

goat2 wrote: »

are there people heading the red cross who happen to be related to people in government, and if so who are they, and who in government are they related to, or are they friends,
Also how is it that now you do not see hse ambulances anymore at sprots events, while you will see the red cross, why,

It would be pretty wasteful to have HSE ambulances waiting around at sports events.

miju

goat2 wrote: »

Also how is it that now you do not see hse ambulances anymore at sprots events, while you will see the red cross, why,

Why bother having a HSE vehicle at an event when there will already be one of the voluntary orgs more than likely present?