The Hepatitis Foundation

Radio NZ reports:

The $128,000 in travel expenses spent by the Hepatitis Foundation board chair could have been used to directly help people with Hepatitis C, the former chief executive says.

A two-year investigation into the charity that was kept secret for more than a year showed the foundation splashed out on lavish dinners, flights and hotels, and could not account for thousands of dollars of credit card expenses.

The investigation by government-run regulator Charities Services found excessive expenses and gross mismanagement may have occurred, though the foundation told RNZ there was no evidence of any wrongdoing.

It spent more than $128,000 on travel for its board chairperson, Chris Cunningham, in just over two years and paid for lavish dinners at top Auckland restaurants.

That should have never happened. Chairs should not have the ability to run up such expenses. On boards I have served any expenses of the Chair must be signed off by another director.

The Chair is also a professor of Maori health and director of the Massey University’s Research Centre for Maori Health and Development. Surely those roles must be called into question.

The Foundation is almost 100% taxpayer funded. It has managed to build up $8 million of assets which suggests it has been growing fat at our expense.