Builder’s Biggest Mistake: 28 Charged in Bribery Scandal!
Вставка
- Опубліковано 9 лют 2025
- 28 people have been charged in a massive bribery scandal, where VBA officials allegedly accepted bribes to fast-track builder registrations without proper checks. The IBAC investigation uncovered years of corruption that may have led to unqualified builders working across Victoria.
What does this mean for homeowners, builders, and the entire industry? How did these approvals slip through the cracks, and what will happen next? Watch as we break down the scandal, the key players involved, and the shocking consequences for Victoria’s construction sector.
What do you think should happen to those involved? Should there be tougher penalties for corruption in the building industry? Drop your thoughts in the comments!
Articles:
Herald Sun:
www.heraldsun....
ABC:
www.abc.net.au...
If you or someone you know has been affected by this scandal or dodgy building practices, we want to hear your story! We’re committed to exposing the truth and holding the industry accountable. If you’re willing to share your experience, reach out to us, we’d be happy to look into it and bring more awareness to these issues.
Pin this
Idea for some sneaky undercover inspections.
I used to operate a skip bin truck, drop-off/pickup from building sites, no one gave me a thought, walk inside, around, checkout designs, inspect workmanship, chat to tilers, painters, etc. Some the crap I seen, stories I heard.
Keep up the good work.
so, if they arent licenced and they will be charged with corruption, then just tell bank to return your money and bank will start collecting the debt from the builders and their families and from goverment
Zeher. I have contacted your company for assistance a few times in the last 12 months only being told that you did not cover a north Victorian town (that has a bypass off the main highway). How can a person contact you as you are asking? We ended up having the builder completely tear out the new bathroom and new laundry back to the bare floor joists and wall studs but that was not very easy and with a lot of argument. It wasn't just "demo it" as you say in your videos. We are in the situation that we have a builder who it appears to me can't do hardly anything correct, not even screw a screw in place. Your videos have been of great assistance and we sought your help but couldn't get a response from you, only a brief response from whoever answers your Contact Us messages. It has come to the point that I have started buying software to produce my own Site Inspections slideshow to rival your great video work. During the work, after I raised so many faults with the builder, I was banned from being present at any future inspection and my inexperienced young daughter had to fend for herself listening to excuses given by the builder blaming other people. In your videos you say this is an offence under Section 19 of the Building Contracts Act. I have twice asked the Victorian Consumer Affairs to take action under Section 19 but it won't do anything. As such, I have written to the Premier asking that she asks the Consumer Affairs head to start enforcing the law that is within its portfolio. In my slideshow I intend to make reference to you including calling out a technical challenge for something even you haven't seen. I therefore need your approval. Now back to my opening statements, how are you contactable when you are asking to make contact with you.
Nothing less than a royal commission into the VBA and their practices is warranted here.
We cannot stand by and watch innocent families pay for piles of crap that are dangerous and unsafe. We need to start a petition to government right now.
its election season all ppl going for it will promise it i can really only see Duton going thru with it
not that im a fan of his its just he's law enforcement background
When that apartment tower at Olympic Park in Sydney started cracking up it was said that they were built for investors - not to be lived in...
State of doggy Dan.
100%
And these are just the ones they could prove in a court of law. The fraud is most likely happening on a much larger scale.
wtf is going on in this country
This reminds me of high court finding that neither ASIC or ASX are responsible for monitoring fraud in the stock market, because apparently these things just happen and that burden should ultimately land on shareholders being directly lied to
Like wtf is the point of these agencies then
Follow the money!
@@colinarnett9546 Follow the surnames.
@@colinarnett9546 They will get a slap on the hand , the entire system including the courts are corrupt .
Sounds like an organized crime syndicate.
Why such aggression if they've nothing to hide. It's a instant extreme red flag
"we could have had our own specialist" - isnt that ment to be the builder lol
My Hubby works in this industry. He is constantly fixing the horrible workmanship of these criminals and being an honest person in nature, he has found it hard to see how bad it is. When we found your channel he felt vindicated in what he was saying and seeing. I also work in a field where I indirectly hear how bad the protections for home owners are. We both have been saying for years that the system is massively corrupted. The "inspectors" have no accountability and are easily corrupted. For too long they have it easy. To stop these criminal builders, the inspectors need to be held accountable.
Totally agree
I wish we knew the names of these "inspectors" as we do the "builders"
The regulator needs to adopt a '3 strikes and your out' rule - i.e. get done doing dodgy approval work 3 times and you will never be approved to inspect ever again - period, and no running to another state, they should be all interlinked.
Our housing minister needs to be held to account also
Good husband! Shouldn’t be his job to fix other people’s incompetence
Mate, you are a legend! You shook the whole builders market across the country. I am from WA and saw your WA - wellard house inspection video. I think WA is lucky to have some good builders. Building inspection has been on the rise after watching your videos. Your initiative of posting videos saved a lot of australians hard earned money.
True, the amount of awareness that has been created by this channel is nothing short of awesome..
This exposes the building authorities are not doing their jobs. This is huge. Awesome job for exposing this corruption. Wish you the best for 2025.
Name and shame the lawyer.
yep, what a piece of work
....and disbarr him immediately from ever practising law again
If it was in America their faces won't be BLURRIED, stop BLURRING THEM if you think you're doing a GOOD cause because you're not either by protecting corruption.
This is probably tip of the iceberg. Organised crime has tentacles throughout the building industry. It started with equipment hire, moved into labour hire, and now the actual building side. I really hope you take your security seriously as you have probably become a thorn in the side of some dangerous people.
Yeah really, just ask FriendlyJordies what happens when you piss off organised crime.
Mate, there is a whole Army of followers watching out for Him and the Good folks.
Thank you for your advocacy for home owners, you've been calling this shite for years. This channel should have a million subs.
If he was in the US he'd have 10 million by now.
Thanks for your part in exposing this. Stay safe brother, a lot of people are not happy with what you are doing for the people of Victoria.
Zahir goes on tele ONE time !!!! and and now he has 4 camera angles per convo ! love the progress mate !!
Don't underestimate your part in this your Site Inspectors channel is Awesome. Now we know they were scared of you because they had something to fear. You are a legend and if we had more investigative journalists like you in the mainstream media then maybe more people would tune in. LEGEND.
The mainstream media isn't about unearthing corruption. Knowing what the culture is inside these organizations, they are very much a boyz club. They would rather pump the house prices up to enrich themselves that uncover the corruption and slimy scum bags that infest the industry.
Really appreciate the work you are doing in keeping us informed!!
Anyone would think these "builders" wanted to destroy the home owners so they could come in and buy it all for themselves and leave Australians destitute. Thank God for this channel keeping Australia cleaner.
Yeah, they want to make Australians suffer.
The majority of RPL (Recognition of Prior Learning) centers-around 95%-are issuing fraudulent qualifications in exchange for fees. This system needs to be completely overhauled, with all qualifications being returned to TAFE, where proper standards and assessments can be ensured
'The majority of RPL (Recognition of Prior Learning) centers-around 95%-are issuing fraudulent qualifications in exchange for fees.'
I can believe this, i know guys who got their tickets through various 'organisations'..all they needed was photos of their work,answer some very basic questions and they were set.
There was a mob around years ago, actually required videos of you carrying out certain tasks while explaining how and why you were doing it a certain way, unfortunately their's wasnt held up as a required standard and they went out of businesss..
I've worked (retail) with "qualified" engineers in australia. They struggle to do basic shit sometimes.
100%. They're all scams.
I am absolutely loving some of the new videos, the updates on the inspections with these dodgy builders are something that makes me happy to know that there is some justice and action taking place. Keep up the good work!
@Ford1955 better than any TV today
@nottenvironmental6208 Absolutely! A million times better than something like A Current Affair. To be honest, I really am questioning why soneone like the ABC hasn't done something like a 4 Corners special in really bad building practices especially in the midst if a housing crisis. Also maybe a teamup with Biko Konstantinos for a video analysis between the housing crisis, poor housing quality and what it could mean in this country (especially in a finance sense)
@Ford1955 I'd watch that. I respect Biko for his efforts to improve Australia.
Corruption in the legal and building associated sectors in Victoria? I am shocked! Shocked I tell you!
😁
Well i'm not that shocked!
I'd be more shocked to find legit officials in that sector.
Had to laugh at the bit where one of the guys says:
“Mate I’ve already had an inspector here from the VBA and he’s approved everything”.
Is he referring to the VBA inspector that he bribed???
The VBA is nothing but a joke.
Exactly what I thiught
Mate I’ve worked in Sydney for nearly 10 years… this shit happens all the time. Another scam is projects managers getting free Reno’s so companies secure work. Someone should have a look at that…..
No chance of that happening in NSW. It goes back to the days of the BLF where the union bosses enjoyed luxury holiday retreats .
You’re doing gods work mate, we need more people like you who put the effort in to do what’s right for people building their homes.
HA - you FOOL - there is no “god”
@ One day you’ll know who the real fool is
@@JBHIFI-fo4lb HA HA - you absolute brain numb FOOL - superstition is NOT real - HA HA HA HA
Zeus or Nimrod the horned one . . God of the bible & Quran , Saturn old Sun
@@benwinter2420 HA HA - and god created the earth - HA - and it is flat - HA
Thank you so much for doing this work. Part of the reason we have a housing crisis is this crap. People are simply scared to touch anything new and look for older established builds. The new 'supply' coming online has absolutely poor quality and not livable, and it's awful to see VBA accepting bribes making dodgy buildings come online.
Do your best and bribe the rest! Well done SI team
Is anyone really surprised? Great work man.
Thx mate , you and your channel have been instrumental in helping every day hardworking people attain justice.. so to, irradicating these corrupt unqualified builders and “trusted “ officials.
Thank you 🙏
We need take the lid off QBCC! Corruption is rife in the building industry
Shame on VBA
Be careful bro, can see alot of these dodgy builders doing dodgy stuff to shut you up
All the best, you're doing great work!
Love your work!
I hope more regulation can address these poor quality builds and corrupt people!
It should be that inspectors are hired by the council and the builder is not told when they are coming on site.
Great work exposing these complete scumbags, keep up the great work. Huge respect! X
The world is a better place with you in it mate. Thanks for helping to expose these corrupt people. If more people acted like you, the whole of Australia would feel confident in the building industry again. I salute you sir. Please keep making these kind of videos and exposing shoddy workmanship. You're a legend in my eyes. Keep up the great fight!!
Keep up the good work, brother!
Just proves what a shemozzel the VBA is
Bloody good job young man!! The home owners of the country needs more people like you. Thank you for doing your part to clean up the swamp
Incredible work Zeher. Wish there were more people like you out there holding these people to account. Thank you for what you do
Just looked at a brand new rental property , townhouse , 3 on a block. The thing was prob worse than anything I’ve seen on here. Underneath the stairs was bare and had electrics showing in the lounge room , when I walked up the stairs it felt like it was going to collapse. I said when is it finished , she said it’s done now ready to rent. Every single trade was responsible here , builders painters tolers plaster the Fkn lot. Not one part of the building was up to standard absolute pish. Keep up the courageous work you are for the people .
Maybe no actually Qualified Tradesman were involved.
@ wouldn’t be surprised it was that rubbish.
Your work is fantastic. Good work catching the creeps!!
What a scammer!!
Bro, I've been watching you a long time. Integrity and balls, both make a man. You're a real aussie hero.
Thanks and be careful
To put in your terms, OMG! This is REALLY Huge! I'm not in Victoria, but how many regulatory bodies in other states are similarly compromised? This is going to blow up BIG Time! The Victorian government will have a lot to be accountable for! Thankou for your awesome work as usual.
You are awesome. Thanks for exposing bad builders. Next we need the contractors that they hire. They are equally to blame.
Naming and shaming, love to see it. Keep up the good work mate 👍
Keep up the good work uncovering the filth and swamp of the building industry
keep up the great work mate, the industry needs you to highlight the shoddy workmanship going on.
THANK YOU SIR , For going ABOVE and BEYOND Once again
Proving building industry is WRONG Again 👍👍👍👍👍👍
Thank you again mate, without you this wouldnt be bought to light for all of us too see. The work you do in the industry is so valuable!
Great work, VBA exposed, seek and destroy. This channel gets better and better 👍
This man needs to be protected! Thank you.
@@Paul-qq7mh I’m glad he wears that thick protective police style vest I just home he has a bullet proof one on 🙏
My family suffering same situation near four years.this is VBA problems .lot of innocent families suffering and affected this unfair situation .please any good lawyers come fowerd to help us take class action aginst them
You’re god sent mate. Make the building industry great again. One step at the time.
It's not just building, there are so many "qualified" engineers, tradesmen and even medical people who have gone through a "recognition of prior learning" and received a qualification without any skill whatsoever. Most bluff their way through a job until they fall flat on their face, some keep up the sham for years before being caught out.
This had to be happening , the VBA have ignored how many complaints forwarded to them .sack them all
This explains why so many houses have been allowed to be built by unsuitable and incompetent builders with unqualified "tradies'. Keep up the good work!
I love that you are you do your job soooooooo damn good that it goes into other sectors of the building industry!!!
fined, jailed and no allowance to be a builder anymore only outcome that should happen
I would be thinking of deportation as well
@@linoiovenitti7207 if they're citizens can't do that
@@sleeplessbard2519couldnt care. They’re not citizens of Australia. Foreigner dogs
@@sleeplessbard2519yeeeaaahh, i don’t think too many of them are
@@sleeplessbard2519 revoke it then, they're ruining this country
You're my Australian of the year, the awareness you are spreading is god tier
Well who would have thought, corruption in the building industry..! Well done once again Zeher, you are doing vitally important work my friend.
Nothing says, we build quality homes and stand by our work like refusing the owners an independent inspection.
Seriously you should be voted Australian of the Year!!
I have a mate who was a very senior civil servant who left 20 years ago. He recently moved his successful private sector business to WA saying, "Victoria is the most corrupt state in Australia". Another friend who is a high profile interior architect told me 10 years ago that they 'never work in Victoria if possible "because the entire construction industry in Victoria is riddled with corruption from top to bottom". Summary - it's not something new & sadly if you look at IBAC's record for actual prosecutions (inc. banning orders, fines and actual criminal or even civil convictions) they are a toothless tiger. IBAC was founded by the Libs in 2012, but since 2014 Labour has made sure they are all bark and no bite. The next stage and expensive major IBAC enquiry and in 5 years time when it concludes there will have been zero change.
Who knew that electing a dodgy real estate salesman into government a few decades ago, who then removed government over sight of inspections, would have lasting repercussions.
I am flabbergasted at these allegations.
And one of those caught is a dodgy building surveyor... probably takes paperbags himself!
Makes 100% sense now how you always struggled to have the vba take any action on any thing brought up
The shoddy work on so many properties should be investigated. Been going on for years. My Dad left the trade years ago because he witnessed so much corruption.
By helping home owners that employed you and sharing those experiences, you’ve indirectly helped so many others moving forward. Keep up the good fight!
That bald guy would be unconscious , waiting for the ambulance
Appreciate what you do for the buyers, and looks like you're helping uncover something on a grand scale. Good work!
Just buying an old home and renovating…..Cannot trust a new build.
Be careful of the next bear you poke man, stay safe!
Great vid
Good job bro, its good to see someone with INTEGRITY and morals, protecting Aussies hard earned cash from scammers and bad and unsafe workmanship. There is too many au gov employees in the building industry not doing their jobs. Keep up the great work. 😊
Need you on Scotland, brother...many thanks,Luis
Corruption of a few vic builders is unbelievable. Not just the builders but the government as well
Any builder reacting like that is 100% guilty of being shoddy.
if they are all proven guilty, the system has been proven as untrustworthy. it SHOULD mean that everyone registered in VIC should have to be recredentaled. if they are registered in another state which could be trusted, then they should be fast-tracked.
I imagine everytime a dodgy construction company gets what they deserve, it is like Christmas came early. Great work Zahir!
You're doing God's work, brother (Justice). May God bless you and keep you safe 🙏
These builders and lawyers have no concept of shame because if they did they would not keep on wrecking people’s lives.Houses are expensive and most of us work and save hard to become home owners.These people are really evil.Can we not go back to a time when a builder took pride in his work.?
Thank you for doing what you do, this industry desperately needs more people like you to counter all the bad eggs in it.
This is so good to hear. They need to go hard after the dodgy pricks throughout the entire building industry across Australia.
If it's the same Ozcan Oztas...he was a candidate for Hume City Council in 2024 🤔
In the modern lexicon.... that sounds legit. Look at the UK where similar sounding surnames pop up everywhere in local government across the whole British Isles.
Love how one man is cleaning up a multi-million dollar industry. Not all heroes wear capes, some wear combat gear and carry a clipboard as a weapon.
"No one has told us you were coming" So I guess the builders lawyer lives on the footpath in front of this house.
Keep up the good work👋👋👋
Good work!!! Keep up the pressure mate you’re awesome 🥂👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
I'm so sick of this world of corruption, greed and nepotism. How long are we going to allow them to keep a knee to our head? Good work exposing them
When are you going to apply for top job at the VBA and fix this mess? Seems more likely than a royal commission.
Corruption is the only explanation of how this is happening. So glad these criminals are getting caught. But what about the building surveyors that are signing off on this mess? They've gotta be corrupt too.
Bro we need a flow chart to see how they are all interlinked
All applications should be reviewed! Let’s GO.
The VBA should have been watching your videos more often 😂 Tip of the Iceberg in my opinion.
How TF is anyone supposed to have confidence in the industry
Horrible corruption in the industry, absolutely send those involved to jail.
I wish New Zealand had someone like you. My parents had a massive home renovation. They got massively fked over not only by the builder but also by the court. He fled to aus we think. To all Australian people, his name is Riaz, Muslim ,his favorite slogun "trust me"
I’ve been through this on a defective vehicle crossover, where the concreting company engaged in intimidation tactics and had unqualified people doing the job. My crossover has a number of defects, there’s no longer any drainage for stormwater from my house, the concrete is cracking and it’s been an absolute nightmare.
May God protect you and take care of you, and I ask God to protect you with His glory and power from the evil of what you find and fear.❤
They need to take every single assest and cent those builders have and give it back to the home owners. Plus put everyone involved in prison for a minimum of 10 years
Great work there mate, you do an absolute awesome job looking after the clients.
All these bad builders need to be held accountable, possibly even prisoned.
From William.
Bills Channel 1987
Love your work, keep exposing these crook's 👌
Scandalous. VBA needs a clean out and rebuild from the top down.
Smashing it mate, keep up the great work 👏