Bay of Plenty Times
  • Bay of Plenty Times home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Sport

Locations

  • Coromandel & Hauraki
  • Katikati
  • Tauranga
  • Mount Maunganui
  • Pāpāmoa
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Bay of Plenty Times

Editorial: Chief of SFO looks stupid

Bay of Plenty Times
19 Oct, 2011 12:28 AM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Serious Fraud Office head Adam Feeley probably doesn't know whether to be embarrassed, relieved or worried today.

On Monday it was announced Mr Feeley wouldn't face any legal or police action, after he handed out copies of Allan Hubbard's biography as Christmas party prizes while Mr Hubbard was under investigation by the SFO.

More bizarrely, this is not Mr Feeley's first instance of bad judgment.

The spotlight also fell on the embattled SFO boss after it was revealed he celebrated criminal charges being laid against Bridgecorp chief Rod Petricevic by serving staff a bottle of champagne belonging to that company's directors.

But after an investigation by State Services Commissioner Iain Rennie, it was decided on Monday that "no further action is necessary".

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

So Mr Feeley is safe for now - but perhaps the damage has already been done.

It is, of course, easy to criticise.

But any impartial observer will recognise that the actions of Mr Feeley were stupid in the extreme.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

It appears that Mr Feeley has himself accepted this, through apologising for his behaviour and expressing regret.

The fact that the head of an organisation with such an important role as the SFO could make such serious lapses of judgment is cause for real concern.

Regardless of whether they work in the public or private sector, there exists a not-unrealistic expectation on the heads of large organisations that they bring a particular level of judgment and perception awareness to their roles.

On both counts, Mr Feeley has failed miserably.

The case against Mr Hubbard, who in September died in a car crash near Oamaru, was one which polarised public opinion.

His untimely death meant the charges against him were never proven.

However, the simple existence of the SFO investigation meant Mr Feeley's decision to hand out copies of the financier's biography was ill-considered, particularly when weighed against the firestorm of public opinion that swirled around Mr Hubbard.

The same argument applies to the wine incident.

While Mr Rennie has publicly backed Mr Feeley, describing him as an "effective chief executive and leader", it remains to be seen whether Mr Feeley's staff now hold the same view.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Bay of Plenty Times

Bay of Plenty Times

Hannah Cross embraces creativity for Miss Universe NZ finale

20 Jun 03:00 AM
Bay of Plenty Times

'Stars in the sky': Matariki ceremony cherishes those passed

20 Jun 01:45 AM
Bay of Plenty Times

Why a journalist roleplayed a rescue victim with Bay of Plenty’s Civil Defence team

20 Jun 12:00 AM

Jono and Ben brew up a tea-fuelled adventure in Sri Lanka

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Bay of Plenty Times

Hannah Cross embraces creativity for Miss Universe NZ finale

Hannah Cross embraces creativity for Miss Universe NZ finale

20 Jun 03:00 AM

She repurposes op-shop gowns to highlight her creative skills and sustainable fashion.

'Stars in the sky': Matariki ceremony cherishes those passed

'Stars in the sky': Matariki ceremony cherishes those passed

20 Jun 01:45 AM
Why a journalist roleplayed a rescue victim with Bay of Plenty’s Civil Defence team

Why a journalist roleplayed a rescue victim with Bay of Plenty’s Civil Defence team

20 Jun 12:00 AM
Why a 'cute' pet is now included in a pest management plan

Why a 'cute' pet is now included in a pest management plan

19 Jun 10:00 PM
Help for those helping hardest-hit
sponsored

Help for those helping hardest-hit

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Bay of Plenty Times e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Bay of Plenty Times
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP