AFP hierarchy cleared out to make way for AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw captain’s picks
A broom is being put through the corridors of the Australian Federal Police after a horror two years of turmoil, dysfunction and widespread criticism.
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Exclusive: The highest echelons of the Australian Federal Police hierarchy have been cleared out to make way for “fresh blood” as the new Commissioner, Reece Kershaw, takes up the job.
Two of the highest ranking executives in the AFP, a Deputy Commissioner and the Chief Operating Officer have been told their contracts won’t be renewed, and another senior executive position is also under review, ahead of the regime change aimed at rebuilding the agency.
Home Affairs Minister, Peter Dutton, welcomed the appointment of Commissioner Kershaw last week, saying “I do want to work closely with the Commissioner to make frontline officers the main focus, and support them to focus on destroying criminal networks in whatever form here and where we have a presence internationally.
“He comes to the job with enthusiasm and an important AFP background, but more recently with the operational experience of a busy and diverse jurisdiction that is the Northern Territory,” said Mr Dutton.
Mr Kershaw, who will be the eighth AFP Commissioner, was appointed after the previous Commissioner Andrew Colvin stepped down at the end of his five-year contract.
His appointment also comes after horror two years of turmoil and dysfunction at the AFP including a string of six suicides and widespread criticism about its heavy handed approach raiding the homes and offices of journalists.
Mr Kershaw has had a distinguished career in the AFP in various roles including overseas postings to The Hague, East Timor and the Solomon Islands, and secondments to the National Crime Authority and the Australian Crime Commission before he joined the Northern Territory Police in 2011. He was appointed Commissioner of the NT Police, Fire and Emergency Services in 2015.
After his swearing in ceremony last week, Mr Kershaw said “my initial focus is to ensure our frontline officers in the AFP are supported with the right training, technology and equipment, that the operating model of the organisation is fit for purpose for now and the future, and that the health and wellbeing of all staff is supported by the appropriate strategies and mechanisms.”
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Up until August the AFP had four deputy commissioners. The decision not to renew the contract of one, Leanne Close, the decision not to renew the COO, Sue Bird, and to review the position of another senior executive, came after one of the most popular and experienced Deputies, Ramzi Jabbour, quit — five months after standing aside during a professional standards investigation. Jabbour, was considered the most knowledgeable of the AFP officers and his resignation was seen as a big blow to the force.
His resignation prompted an outpouring of support across the law enforcement world for one of the most experienced and well-liked executives in the AFP.
Outgoing AFP Commissioner Andrew Colvin paid tribute to Mr Jabbour saying was a colleague who would be surely missed and his career highlights include leading complex and challenging high profile organised crime and people smuggling investigations in Australia and internationally.
The changes has cleared the way for Mr Kershaw to choose his own executive team as he reshapes the organisation.
AFP officers have revealed that the agency is fractured and riddled with officers suffering low morale, anxiety and a lack of support for mental health issues.
A new approach targeting gender diversity under the previous Commissioner, which included removing gender bias from promotional decisions, received pushback from both men and women; men not wanting to apply because they believed the women be chosen regardless of ability, and some women worried that they would not be getting any promotion on their own merits.
There have also been persistent complaints of bullying that had dogged the organisation for decades.
AFP insiders have revealed how officers have become the victims of witch hunts and character assassinations, and how those who are not the “favourites” would be targeted and investigated for everything possible in what officers have coined as “procedural bullying”.
AFP sources have revealed that anyone admitting to mental health issues were usually isolated and colleagues were sometimes asked to “spy” on them to get information about their condition. Being socially isolated or “sent to coventry” was also said to be used as a form of bullying.
Mr Colvin was the second consecutive AFP Commissioner not to stay on after their five-year term.
His predecessor, Tony Negus, also left after five years and took up a position as High Commissioner to Canada.
Originally published as AFP hierarchy cleared out to make way for AFP Commissioner Reece Kershaw captain’s picks