Complaint Review: PFRA; PFRA members ; Public fundraising Regulatory association peter Hills Jones PFRA CEO emily meyer mick simmons ; paul tavatgis founder - melboune victoria

It is my opinion that the Public Fundraising Regulatory Association, Australia, is not about Fair Play and Regulation.  My assertitions are confirmed, among other evidences by the article  below:

fundraisingpartners.com.au/single-post-2018/03/11/37-Tougher-penalties-for-PFRA-members

You will be aware that over 5000 fundraisers initiated a class action against PFRA's long-standing member: The APPCO group for sham contracting. The PFRA has been less than honest in dealing with this scandal. The rightful action should be: suspend or terminate APPCO from its membership  and affiliated companies pending the outcome of the inquiry.  That isnt going to happen soon, since, more than any other member of the PFRA, the APPCO group pays large sums of money to the PFRA in fees, possibly more than any other fundraising agency. 

It is also my opinion that the suggestions by the new PFRA Australia CEO, Mr peter Hills Jones, to levy penalties of up to $21,000 on smaller and insignificant fundraising agencies is aimed at giving APPCO an advantage over them, and its not fair play but foul. In my view, the threats amount to bullying and intimidation and could as well be tantamount to APPCO bullying techniques that we saw expoused on TV. Did Mr Jones graduate from APPCO College?

We are yet to see the resume's of PFRA CEO filed online in Australia and whether or not he is conversant with Australian workplace laws? and can speak gracefully as is the norm in the charitable sector. I read an article that he was simpy poached, or in the words of the article, "approcahed by the PFRA Australia" to come and replace Mr Tavatgis.

It is also my opinion that unless the 56 charities listed on the PFRA website do something positive about APPCO, and possibly boycott APPCO products until issues are ressolved, there will awlays be a stain on their reputation, particularly on the part of young-people that are aggrievated. I hope Im mistaken. APPCO case could only be a tip of the ice berg.

The PFRA in Australia has to show that it can be trusted by charities, and it only began in late 2014, the damage that could be done to the charity, could be irreparable.

We are greatly disturbed that inspite the fact APPCO has not changed its model, and the founders live in extreme wealth, while the fundraisers were ripped off, APPCO is still engaged in fundraising as if nothing happened, and the charities responsible are now purporting to be "regulated".

In my opinin, I'm also very bothered with the fact that the PFRA in Australia is under-staffed, yet it purports to do "Everything" in  "regulating" face-to face, including handling complaints. Mr Jones will really need to convince me that the PFRA in the UK does "Everything". On the coontrary, the PFRA in the UK does not handle complaints, but it simply passes all complaints to the Fundraising Regulator at: fundraisingregulator.org.uk

In that way, the PFRA UK is honest and transparent, unlike the newly initiated PFRA in Australia that want to "investigate" complaints against itself or its fundraisers.