Bill Papas, the man at the centre of nearly $400 million worth of fraud allegations by major Australian and global banks, has been accused of lying in a sworn affidavit, The Australian Financial Review reports.
Mr Papas filed three affidavits in the Federal Court on Friday morning after repeated demands to do so over the last month, but Jeremy Giles, SC, representing Westpac, immediately accused Mr Papas of lying after his first review of the documents.
“We simply don’t accept that as an accurate statement, and we will in due course lead evidence of payments out of the Forum Group Financial Services account to Mazcon of circa $2 million in mid-June this year,” Mr Giles said, according to the AFR.
An interim suppression order was granted over Mr Papas’ affidavits until a hearing at midday this Wednesday to argue whether they would be suppressed.
This latest news comes as Mr Papas made representations to his lawyers that he intended to return to Australia from Thessaloniki, but has since claimed he had a positive COVID-19 test and is now unable to return because of a lack of funds and limited flight availability.
Bill Papas and Louise Agostino are holed up in an apartment near the Thessaloniki seaside in northern Greece. Photo: The Australian Financial Review.
“He can’t get a flight without money, and flights are limited because of the increase in the cap on arrivals,” Mr Papas’ barrister, Jim Johnson, told the court on July 28.
The whereabouts of Mr Papas had proved a mystery until that point as Westpac began to uncover an alleged fraud involving funds it had extended to companies in the Forum group that they believed were on behalf of the bank’s blue chip clients.
Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, has today confirmed that he spoke with the Prime Minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, over the phone last night.
Mr Morrison announced the news at a press conference this afternoon, where he was also unveiling the government’s blueprint to reopening the country based on health and economic modelling provided by the Doherty Institute and Treasury.
“This has been a long war against this virus and there have been many, many battles, and this is a fierce one when it comes to the delta strain,” Mr Morrison began.
“As I have said on many occasions, Australia is not alone in this battle. This battle is being fought right across the world as every single country is adapting and changing its responses to ensure they can get on top of this.”
Government sources said that during the “warm discussion,” the Greek and Australian leaders compared notes on responding to the COVID-19 challenges, particularly the Delta strain and their respective vaccination programs.
Mr Morrison and Mr Mitsotakis also discussed expanding trade opportunities through the EU-Australia FTA currently being negotiated, as well as climate change and cooperation on multilateral organisations.
The Australian Prime Minister then invited his Greek counterpart to visit Australia.
Labor Leader, Anthony Albanese, has proposed a novel solution to boost Australia’s vaccination rate – a cash payment to those who are fully jabbed.
According to The Daily Telegraph, Mr Albanese will call on Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, to offer every Australian $300 each if they receive their second COVID-19 jab by December 1.
Should a federal election be held before then, Mr Albanese would honour his commitment and pay out the cash retrospectively.
“The government has failed on its two jobs this year, the rollout of the vaccine and fixing quarantine,” Mr Albanese said.
Anthony Albanese proposes a $300 reward for those fully vaccinated by December.
“It needs to use every measure at its disposal to protect Australians and our economy.”
This policy announcement came amid concerns Labor had until now been spending too much time pointing out early rollout failures and not encouraging enough Australians to get the jab.
Liberal MP for Reid, Dr Fiona Martin, told The Daily Telegraph she was worried a series of negative social media posts about the vaccine rollout had potentially encouraged hesitancy because they did not focus on urging people to get the jab – particularly younger Australians who were recently given access to AstraZeneca shots.
“Since the commencement of the vaccine rollout the Opposition leader has posted over 100 negative posts on Facebook criticising the rollout compared to just 10 promoting the rollout,” Dr Martin, a registered psychologist, told the media outlet.
She said an analysis of Mr Albanese’s Facebook page found that until a post on Saturday encouraging people to book their shot, he had only posted once on February 23 pointing people to the Department of Health’s COVID vaccination website.
Many other Labor frontbenchers have been similarly negative but some, including Senator Kristina Keneally, deputy opposition leader Richard Marles, and Sydney MP Tanya Plibersek, have posted about getting their jabs on social media, an act which is widely considered helpful to increasing uptake.
Morrison blasts Albanese’s vaccination ‘bribe’:
Scott Morrison.
During a press conference today, Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, launched a blistering attack on Labor’s cash incentives, saying Anthony Albanese has “lost belief if he thinks he needs to bribe the Australian people.”
The Coalition held their first joint party room meeting for the Spring parliamentary sitting weeks on Tuesday morning.
The Morrison government has launched several attacks on the opposition’s cash incentive policy which will see $300 paid to every person who receives both vaccinations by December 1.
The Prime Minister questioned Labor’s $6 billion proposal during the meeting, saying the “ill-conceived” idea was “all bubbles and no thought.”
Cumberland Mayor, Steve Christou, has called for the State Government to provide pop-up mental health assistance for people struggling through lockdowns, The Daily Telegraph reports.
“People’s wellbeing is very vital, especially during this lockdown. People need to be supported, especially our teenagers,’’ Cr Christou said.
“People are focused on adults and the loss of income but teenagers are at a vital stage of their lives. If we put people in lockdown we have to extend the services to them.
Cumberland Mayor, Steve Christou.
“It’s going to be another weight or pressure on the service but it needs to happen.”
Cr Christou said he would raise the suggestion of walk-in services with council officers this week before speaking with NSW Health, The Daily Telegraphreports.
‘Very insensitive’:
Meanwhile, when speaking with Sky News Australia on Monday night, Cr Christou also touched on the topic of deploying ADF personnel to areas with high migrant populations and called the move ‘very insensitive.’
ADF personnel have been deployed to Sydney’s streets to assist NSW Police during their COVID-19 compliance operation. Picture: Toby Zerna.
“A lot of them are refugees. They’ve escaped hardship, they’ve escaped war torn countries, instances where the army has not represented a good experience for them,” Cr Christou said.
“To come out and say you’re going to put the army out on the streets of Cumberland City Council is very insensitive and shows how out-of-touch our state representatives are.
“Often I shake my head and honestly I tell you, what kind of moronic imbeciles are governing this state, and that includes the Labor opposition as well, because they’ve been silent and complicit in all this.”
ADP personnel and police work together in NSW.
The ADF sent 300 personnel to the streets of Greater Sydney on Monday following a request from New South Wales Police Commissioner Mick Fuller after the state government announced a crackdown on COVID-19 non-compliance.
A majority of the personnel have been tasked with patrolling Sydney’s eight local government areas where COVID-19 cases are the highest – Fairfield, Liverpool, Canterbury-Bankstown, Blacktown, Cumberland, Parramatta, Georges River and Campbelltown – to take the pressure off police.
Nick Kyrgios has given the biggest clue yet that he is considering giving away tennis for good, local Australian media have reported.
The 26-year-old has openly said he doesn’t intend to continue playing long into his thirties and while he’s shown immense talent, his body has struggled to withstand the rigours of a full tour with a hip injury forcing him to retire hurt at Wimbledon last month.
He returned to the ATP tour last week but was beaten by Brit Cameron Norrie in the second round in Atlanta and enters a star-studded Washington field featuring Rafael Nadal, Grigor Dimitrov and Alex de Minaur.
Kyrgios has reportedly said he feels strange about where his career is placed at the moment.
But ahead of his opening match at the Citi Open in Washington DC, Kyrgios was in a reflective mood and according to news.com.au, he confessed that he doesn’t know if each tournament he plays will be his last there.
“Like every time I’m at a tournament, I feel like it could be my last time I’m ever going to be here. In Atlanta I felt the same way,” Kyrgios said according tonews.com.au.
“I don’t know. I don’t know where I’m at. I feel weird. I feel strange about my career at the moment.”
Nick Kyrgios, 26, has been hinting at retirement with growing frequency, including today:
“Every time I'm at a tournament, I feel like it could be my last time I'm ever going to be here…
“I don't know where I'm at. I feel weird. I feel strange about my career at the moment.”
Later, Kyrgios also confessed he doesn’t miss the world of tennis when he is away from the sport, in the strongest hint yet that early retirement could soon be on the horizon.
“I’m not going to lie. I mean, I don’t miss it that much any more,” he said.
“No, it’s good. It’s good to be back obviously, especially at these tournaments where I’m extremely comfortable and there’s a lot of crowd. I think they’re definitely hoping I do well.”
The Canberran is the defending champion in Washington and will take on American Mackenzie McDonald on Tuesday in a tough first round clash.
Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, warned on Monday that Greece is suffering its ‘worst heatwave since 1987,’ which claimed more than 1,000 lives.
Temperatures reached 45 degrees in inland areas of Greece and are expected to remain high for most of the week.
Speaking during a meeting at a power management center, Mitsotakis called on his fellow citizens to help the country out in its hour of need and conserve their power.
“Everything humanly possible has been done to secure the country’s power supply. But we are also asking consumers to help us,” Mitsotakis said at the event.
Αντιμετωπίζουμε τον χειρότερο καύσωνα από το 1987 και αυτό έχει ως αποτέλεσμα μία σημαντική επιβάρυνση του συστήματος. Γίνεται ό,τι είναι ανθρωπίνως δυνατόν για να εξασφαλιστεί η ηλεκτροδότηση της χώρας. Σύσκεψη στο Εθνικό Κέντρο Ελέγχου Ενέργειας του ΑΔΜΗΕ. pic.twitter.com/ff6VIBZQ5u
Authorities have asked citizens to minimise power usage at peak times, notably in the afternoon and evening, in order to prevent the electricity grid from being over-burdened.
The intense heat has helped fan wildfires that have destroyed more than 3,000 hectares of pine and olive groves in the country’s west since Saturday.
Deputy Civil Protection Minister, Nikos Hardalias, said there had been 1,584 fires across Greece in July compared to 953 in 2019, and there had been 116 new blazes in just the last 24 hours.
There are fires across Greece at the moment.
“We are no longer talking about climate change but about a climate threat,” Hardalias told Star TV.
The fire near Patras was not fully under control on Monday, with five villages and a seaside town already evacuated. Eight people have also been hospitalised with burns and respiratory problems.
The fire service on Monday also ordered the precautionary evacuation of a village in the southwestern Peloponnese as it battled a wildfire near Vassilitsi, in the Pylos-Nestor municipality in the region of Messinia.
A fire on Rhodes is largely under control, officials said.
Officials were optimistic, however, that a fire on the island of Rhodes, near the Turkish coast, was on the back foot after more firefighters and resources were deployed overnight.
Olympic rowing champion, Stefanos Ntouskos, was given a hero’s welcome in his native Ioannina in northwestern Greece on Monday, after flying back home from the Tokyo Olympics, where he picked up a gold medal in the Men’s Single Skulls on Friday.
Ntouskos won the sculls in the Olympic best time of 6:40.45 after blasting his way through the third quarter of the race and charging through the last 250 meters to win gold.
“Long live Ioannina, long live Greece,” the 24-year-old athlete said, waving to residents and officials who turned out to welcome him to the Pan-Epirote stadium shortly after he did a victory lap around the city’s main square aboard an army Jeep, with a police motorcyle escort.
Ntouskos was crowned with an olive wreath by Epirus Regional Governor, Alexandros Kachrimanis, and congratulated for this performance in the Tokyo Games by Ioannina Mayor, Moisis Elisaf.
Eight Greek mothers across Australia have been named finalists in the AusMumpreneur Awards for 2021.
The Awards, presented by The Women’s Business School, celebrate and recognise Australian mums in business achieving outstanding success in areas such as business excellence, product development, customer service and digital innovation.
The awards are designed to recognise the growing number of women who successfully balance motherhood and business in a way that suits their life and family.
Here’s the eight Greek Australian mothers who fit in that category:
NSW / ACT:
1. Maria Dalamaras, Rio Consulting Group:
Maria Dalamaras has been recognised in the category ‘B2B Service Business’ for Rio Consulting Group.
Maria is a mum, travel addict and lover of wine, delving deep into the world of digital marketing. She has a psychology background and a natural desire to help people.
This passion for people and everything social media led her to climb out of the corporate space in 2018 to chase her dream of becoming an entrepreneur.
Rio Consulting Group was born and it specialises in all things Digital Marketing. Their most commonly sought services are: social media management, content creation, copy writing, LinkedIn profile management, graphic design and website consulting.
2. Cassandra Kalpaxis, Kalpaxis Legal:
Cassandra Kalpaxis has been named a finalist in a number of categories including: ‘Business Excellence,’ ‘Rising Star AusMumpreneur of the Year,’ ‘Women’s Champion’ and ‘Service Business.’ These are all related to her business Kalpaxis Legal.
Cassandra is a mother who understands all that comes with being a parent and trying to navigate the overwhelming and anxious period that is separation.
Cassandra’s passion for family law has been recognised through the accolades she has received from her recent achievements, including the publication of her book “Dignified Divorce.”
3. Viria Charitos, MEBEME:
Viria Charitos has been recognised as a finalist in the ‘Retail Business’ category for MEBEME.
In late 2017, Viria realised her eldest daughter’s skin and body odour was changing so she decided to do some research on what skincare and deodorant was good for her.
As a qualified beauty therapist, Viria had a good idea of what she liked and what she wanted to keep off her child’s skin. Although there were some good products out there, she couldn’t find anything tailored to tween skin that ticked all the boxes.
The Greek Australian launched MEBEME – skin products that are natural and gentle enough to use on children’s skin, yet effective.
4. Cathy Dimarchos, Solutions2you:
Cathy Dimarchos has been named a finalist in the ‘Women Will Change The World’ category of the AusMumpreneur Awards for Solutions2you.
Cathy is a guide, a coach, a consultant and a motivational voice, delivering a blueprint of business toolkits and solutions to leaders from every imaginable background.
With 35 years experience in the finance industry (and around 50% of that time working in small business), Cathy has alot of knowledge about how people think, act and react.
She uses this skill to perfect a combination of people, business and situational skills.
VIC / TAS:
5. Mary Maksemos, Maksemos Group:
Mary Maksemos has been named a finalist in a number of categories including: ‘AusMumpreneur of the Year,’ ‘Business Excellence,’ ‘Creative Entrepreneur,’ ‘Service Business’ and ‘Business Pivot,’ for Maksemos Group.
Maryis an Industrial Designer and the leading authority in kitchen design in Australia.
Her extensive design advice is drawn from over 20 years of experience in kitchens and she promises to create a unique kitchen space for your renovation.
QLD / NT:
6. Toni Lontis, Toni Lontis Enterprises:
Toni Lontis has been recognised in the ‘Disabled Business Excellence,’ ‘Global Brand’ and ‘Overcoming the Odds’ categories for Tony Lontis Enterprises.
After 35 years in nursing, Toni published a book about what it takes to heal from dysfunction and trauma to create a heart-centered impact and help heal others. An audiobook production was later released and Radio Toni was born.
From these humble beginnings grew a love of interviewing businesses and people, about life, business and the universe. Toni now has multiple live streaming TV/radio shows and a series of co-hosted business shows on different platforms, based in the US and broadcasting to the world.
7. Sophia Arthur Pallas, Sophia Pallas:
Sophia Arthur Pallas has been named a finalist in the ‘Digital Service Business’ and ‘Overcoming the Odds’ categories for her business Sophia Pallas.
Sophia describes herself as a wellness copywriter and launch strategist who helps you “connect deeply with your soul gifts to write copy that feels great, makes more money, and truly serves your clients.”
With over 15 years of experience writing about stuff from murder trials to creating facts sheets, she ensures her copy is personal and vibrant. She’s also worked on real-life launches for some of Australia’s biggest brands and health organisations.
WA / SA:
8. Aphrodite Bouari, Sweet But Psycho Pty Ltd:
Aphrodite Bouari has been recognised in the categories ‘Creative Entrepreneur’ and ‘Regional Business’ for Sweet But Psycho Pty Ltd.
Aphrodite is the owner of Karratha’s only dessert bar, which creates quirky cocktails and authentic Greek and Middle Eastern sweets.
The winners of the 2021 AusMumpreneur Awards will be announced at an online event in September. For more information on the AusMumpreneur Awards visit www.ausmumpreneur.com.
* Please note the above list includes the names of those who are recognised as Greek. If you know someone else, please email us at greek@foreignlanguage.com.au.
With the COVID affected 2020 Tokyo Olympics finally upon us it seems an appropriate time to consider again the athlete who first established the Australia-Greece-Olympic link: Edwin Harold Flack. As a result of his participation in 1896, Australia is one of only five countries to have taken part in all the Games of the modern era (admittedly with partial participation and under the Olympic Flag at the 1980 Moscow Games). At the 1896 Olympics only 14 nations were represented.
However, Australia had yet to federate. Flack claimed to represent an Australia that didn’t exist as a nation state. There was no Australian flag, and he would compete in the colours of his school, Melbourne Grammar.
For Greece, the 1896 Athens Olympics was a matter of national pride and an opportunity to strengthen in the global consciousness the link between the ancient Hellenes and the emerging modern Greek state. Furthermore, 1896 was a year of additional note for modern Greece. The opening of the games deliberately coincided with Greece’s National Day and the 75th anniversary of the outbreak of the War of Independence, remembering that Greece didn’t convert to the modern calendar till 1923 (Julian Calendar: March 25 to 3 April; Gregorian Calendar; 6 to 15 April 1896).
Edwin Flack has a statue erected in his honour.
Edwin Flack was 22 when the Games were revived. Born in London, the son of an accountant who had emigrated to Melbourne when Edwin was a year old, he was raised in South Yarra. At school Flack showed early promise as a long-distance runner. He won prizes for cross-country running in Victoria, New South Wales and New Zealand. He was also an accomplished tennis player.
Sent to London to further his training as an accountant, Flack was granted leave in 1896 to take an Easter vacation. So, he made his way to Athens. “He was a freelance athlete; no Australian body had promoted his attendance at the Games; he carried no national accreditation; and his nationality was that of a British subject resident in the colony of Victoria. Nevertheless, he entered the contest as an ‘Australian’. He was not only the sole competitor from Australia, but he was also the only one from the southern hemisphere.” Contrast that one competitor with the 470 member Australian team attending this year’s games.
Flack’s first appearance was in the heats of the 800 metres. The next day he made his second appearance, in the 1500 metres race, a final without heats, between eight contestants. Flack won, covering the distance in 4 minutes 35.5 seconds. His victory caused consternation among Greek officials, for no Australian flag was at hand; indeed, none existed (being five years before Australia’s federation). Either in error or desperation, officials hoisted the Austrian flag, causing immediate protests. Shortly afterwards the Union Jack was accepted.
Athletes prepare for the 100 metre sprint, 1896 Olympics.
In the 800 metres final there were only three runners: Flack, a Hungarian and a Greek. Flack finished first in 2 minutes 1 second.
On the fifth day, the Marathon race was run. Prayers had been offered that day in many Greek churches for a Greek victory in this race, which followed the route taken 2,500 years earlier by the messenger Pheidippides, who had run from Marathon to Athens to announce the Athenian victory at the Battle of Marathon and then, supposedly, dropped dead.
The Frenchman Lermusiaux set a blistering pace from the start, while Flack stayed back with a pack of Greek runners, but after 10 kilometres Flack moved up to second place. The Frenchman’s early effort had exhausted not only himself but also Flack, whose legs began to wobble. By the 34th kilometre Flack had lost almost all sensation in his legs when the Greek runner, and former water carrier and future policeman, Spyridon Louis (Σπύρος Λούης) passed him, running strongly. Flack staggered on, but at the 37th kilometre his legs finally buckled. He was taken to an ambulance carriage.
Spyros Louis, the first Marathon race winner, during the first Modern Olympic Games. 1896.
In the stadium it was rumoured that the Australian was arriving first. Complete silence reigned. Then the starter of the race, covered in dust from his long ride on horseback, entered the stadium and, going direct to the royal thrones, announced that Louis was in the lead. The news spreads like wildfire and an immense cheer erupted from the crowd.
Louis had run the distance in 2 hours and 58 minutes. He was mobbed by wildly enthusiastic compatriots. A Greek, Kharilaos Vasilakos, took out second place.
A few days later, Flack left Athens and returned to London to resume his accountancy studies. He gave up competitive running and returned to Melbourne the following year.
In Greek sporting circles Flack became well known. He was respected for his two victories, but it was his failed challenge in the last three kilometres allowing a Greek victory in the race that mattered most that won him the affection of the Greek people.
References:
H. Gilchrist, Australians and Greeks, Vol. 1., Sydney, 1992.
