Worth complaint withdrawn
July 3rd, 2009 at 12:57 am by David FarrarThe Korean businesswoman who laid a complaint against former MP and government minister Richard Worth has dropped the matter and the police have decided not to take a case against him, it was reported tonight.
As widely predicted. Richard and his family will be very relieved. Losing your job is nothing compared to the possiility of losing your liberty.
TV3 News reported tonight it had been informed by a source close to the Korean woman that she had dropped her complaint.
“She feels the political fallout around Richard Worth has been sufficient and going through the courts would have been an additional ordeal that would have gained little,” TV3 said.
It also reported police had told the woman there was not enough evidence to take a case against Dr Worth, and that was another reason why she was dropping her complaint.
The Police saying there is no evidence, is a good reason to drop the complaint.
TV3 reported the woman sent an email to Prime Minister John Key giving her account of what happened at the hotel.
“It talks about how they were drinking wine, she was tired and went to bed, and was woken by a naked Richard Worth,” TV3 said.
“It goes on to detail what happened after that.”
Not a good look, regardless of legality.
Related posts:
- Herald on Worth
- A previous accusation by Worth accuser
- How long did Goff sit on complaint?
- R v Worth
July 3rd, 2009 at 1:45 am
I look forward to the Cluseo-esque explanation of how Mr. Worth came to be naked in a completely innocent manner.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 2:09 am
Worths reputation is shredded.
The Worth saga reminds me of the old man in the following joke (except of course he was deviant in another manner)…
A young man is walking through a small village one day and decides to stop by a bar and have a beer. He walks into a bar, and sees a grizzled old man, crying into his beer. Curious, the young man sits down and says, “Hey old timer, why the long face?”
The old man looks at him and points out the window, “See that dock out there? I built that dock with my own two hands, plank by plank, nail by nail, but do they call me Simon the dockbuilder? No, no.”
The old man continued, “And see that ship out there? I’ve been fishing these waters for my village for 35 years! but do they call me Simon the fisherman? No, no. ”
The old man continued, “And see all the crops in the farms out there? I planted and have been farming those crops for my village for nearly 45 years! but do they call me Simon the farmer? No, no. ”
The old man starts to cry again, “But you f**k one goat…”
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 2:24 am
“Woken by a naked Richard Worth”, yikes, eeeek, yuck. Call the Police.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 4:14 am
Mind floss! Bring me mind floss!
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 7:16 am
So why did John Key lose confidence in Richard Worth?
If the criminal investigation is not going to continue then there is no justification for not telling us the reason. Unless there is another investigation or incident.
For the sake of transparency and openness Kiwis need to be told however.
[DPF: I think there has been enough transparency - as in a transparent Richard Worth. And if you can't work out why that behaviour may be seen to undesirable in a Minister - even if not illegal - well you have spent too long in Labour]
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 7:27 am
Dear micky, just imagine if police were allowed to address all the politicial skullduggery that went on under the Absolute Power Regime when the two faced Klark ran the show?
Vote:How many cell blocks would former Liarbour Ministers occupy?
Snap goes her broomstick.
July 3rd, 2009 at 7:51 am
Mickey, you do really talk some crap, don’t you?
“For the sake of transparency and openness…”
Have you suddenly become a window cleaner?
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 7:57 am
I think it is obvious why John Key lost confidence. Worth it seems was lurking aound the bedrooms of all sorts of women placing himself as Minister in a potentially very compromising position, plus he lied to the Prime Minister about it.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 7:57 am
@ mickysavage – did anyone ever tell you that you’re a feckin’ hypocrite? You demand openness and transparency from everyone except your lot. How about Phil Goff be honest about all the contacts he had with Neelam Choudary – that would be a good start!
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 8:07 am
This is a load of arse. You can’t go round destroying peoples careers on untested accusations. Either Worth has done something he needs to be held accountable for or this woman has made a false accusation. Worth was not fired for what hes accused of having done but for having pissed off John Key in some as yet undefined manner so that is a seperate issue.
This needs to go to court, not have her jump ship after making some nasty details public. If nothing else its sets a very dangerous precedent.
Either way I do not like it when governments and their ministers are not help accountable in a transparent manner. We’ve already been there and done that.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 8:09 am
There was an interesting interview with Nigel Latta yesterday on Radio New Zealand. He said that the classic response of a teenager who is caught out doing something wrong was to try and change the subject. Reading these posts the ages of some of the posters now becomes evident.
If Key sacked Worth because of immoral conduct he should come out and say this. He is using the “public interest” in declining to give a reason which makes me think that it is really serious. A criminal investigation and the desire not to taint it could be a “public interest” reason. But if this has been ruled out Key should front up and say what the reason was, no matter how embarassing it is for the National Party.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 8:15 am
Just like Helen always did mickey?
Screw you, hypocracy is labours middle name.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 8:16 am
I don’t see why the public need to know exactly what Worth did. He did nothing illegal apparently. He wasn’t selling secrets to a foreign power. He has behaved badly and paid for it by losing his job. I think that should be the end of it. Some consideration should be given to his wife and family who must be suffering humiliation.
What I can’t understand is why some men will risk their reputations and family lives buy acting so stupidly.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 8:23 am
I want to know why this woman wasn’t prepared to have her claims tested in court Bob. Shes suck Worth without having to subject her story to any kind of examination.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 8:31 am
OK – so we don’t know what Worth did. But we DO know what Worth didn’t do – he didn’t:
* force the resignation of a Police Commissiioner by drip-feeding wrong information to the media
* forge paintings
* get convicted for drink-driving
* destroy the career of a public servant, and lie to Parliament about it
* bully a public servant and assault an opposition MP
* organise a campaign of sleaze and innuendo against a political opponent
* steal an election through misuse of taxpayers’ funds.
Do you still want to talk about transparency micky?
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 8:38 am
Inventory2
Key and co are the ones who talked about “transparency” and continuously leveled the accusation of “corruption”.
The one word that springs to mind regarding this is “hypocrisy”.
Now why did Key get rid of Worth?
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 9:00 am
Micky you fool, he has already given the reason.
He lost confidence in the Minister.
That is all he has to say whether you like it or not. End of story.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 9:03 am
Whaleoil
“He lost confidence in the Minister.
That is all he has to say whether you like it or not. End of story.”
That may be so in North Korea but I thought we lived in a democracy where our politicians were our servants and meant to be open and honest in their dealings.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 9:08 am
How do you know Worth didn’t do some or all of those things, and that these cumulative crimes were what caused the PM to lose confidence in him?
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 9:17 am
Mickey if we need a champion of hypocrasy to speak up we’ll let you know. Till then you can pretty much cram it. We’ve seen your teams version of a “new standard of accountablity”. The court cases are still in progress.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 9:20 am
@ mickeysavage
“That may be so in North Korea but I thought we lived in a democracy where our politicians were our servants and meant to be open and honest in their dealings.”
Where you out of the country for the last 9 years or maybe you have just come out of a coma? The lies and deceit of the last administration were breathtaking in their audacity.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 9:24 am
Key lost confidence in Worth and the ARU have terminated Tuquiri’s contract due to “employment matters”. Much as we’d “all” love to know the gory details in both cases, what we’ve been told is all we need to know.
The only difference appears to be that Tuquiri isn’t prepared to accept his sacking…
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 9:28 am
Hang on. You go up to your Hotel room with another person and drink wine. You say you are tired and go to bed without the other person being asked to leave. The other person ends up in your bed. You spend the night and the next morning have breakfast with that person. I hope she was a good enough lay to make the whole thing worth it, so to speak.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 9:29 am
Danyl
We know that Worth didn’t do any of the things on that list or Labour would be calling him the greatest minister there had ever been – doooh, I forgot… Only Labour people are great for doing shit like that.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 9:31 am
What we are seeing here is the classicdemand by the Left to specify everything in absolute terms. This then gives them an opportunity to nitpick and find minute differences when they come to defend themselves later.
It is not sufficient for them that John key has stated quite clearly that Richard Worth did not meet the standards of behaviour that he expects of his Ministers (and possibly more broadly, members of his Government). No, they and the fawning media demand, yes DEMAND and loudly at that, for John Key to specify exactly what those standards are. Possibly Mickey might grudgingly accept being told what compromises “unacceptable behaviour” but again one could never specify every case so we are left with being told that our Prime Minister has some standards of behaviour that he expects his ministers to better.
What they cannot understand is that terms like “honesty” and “decency”, “respect for others” and “behaving with dignity and courtesy” cannot be defined so precisely but have a meaning to those who also believe in community and family, marriage and care for others and that the line between what is acceptable and what is not is remarkably narrow if it was to be measured as applied by a large section of the population that believes in those things.
John Key will never be able to satisfy those calls for definitions of his standards but I say to mickey and sonic and the rogered nome and other apologists for socialism that by his actions he shall be measured. I’m happy that at last we have a PM who has some standards and is willing to apply them.
And thats all I have to say about that.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 9:45 am
The lefties will be calling for natural justice, for Worth to be reinstated to his ministerial position since the police are not going to charge him. The clamour of “he has been exonerated” will be deafening from the defenders of the previous govt.. Doooh, I forgot again… Only Labour people are exonerated when the police decide not to charge them.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 9:47 am
mickysavage
There is an old saying – ‘once you have sold – shut up’. Have you ever heard it before?
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 10:04 am
maybe Worth should move to India
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8130052.stm
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 10:06 am
burt (3235) Vote: 0 1 Says:
July 3rd, 2009 at 9:45 am
The lefties will be calling for natural justice, for Worth to be reinstated to his ministerial position since the police are not going to charge him.
Well, Burt, here is one lefty who thinks that Worth should be reinstated, OR Key shouldcome clean on why he “lost confidence”.
It ZDOES set a bad example that a person can be fired on unproven allegations, but guess waht? that happens all the time to the workers.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 10:08 am
MNIJ – Key lost confidence in him because he told him porkies. Isn’t it fucking obvious. Did Helen Clarke come clean about DBP and his whips?
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 10:28 am
Brian, if that is the case, then why doesn’t Key come out and say that.
What helen Clarke did or did not do is of no relevance, unless you are of the mind that two wongs DO make a white.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 10:43 am
He did for fuck’s sake. Key said that Worth’s conduct was not what he expected of a minister in his government. What was that conduct – well lets see – business dealings invovling real or preceived conflicts of interest, lobbying on behalf mate’s son, getting caught in honey traps because of WDS, not telling Key the whole story before it came out in the news. Only a few of you lefties seem unable to grasp that. What more do you want? The details of what position he used when he fucked the korean woman?
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 10:51 am
From an Opposition point of view the political game is to keep the Government off balance and then topple it. This has become a sport that provides fodder for lazy media. The Labour Party (and msavage) are less concerned with getting an explanation from Key than they are wanting to perpetuate a situation where an unanswered question creates a vacuum that can be filled with media speculation. It may be effective in that enough stirring will kick up dirt, but surely there are more important issues facing NZ right now.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 12:03 pm
I agree with trout. Look, the media in NZ has no real hard news to report. There just isn’t enough of us. And the news they do manage to report is sensationalised, overreported and in some cases totally untrue. If you are Richard Worth and you do something that involves a sniff of scandal and there hasn’t been a mass shooting/high profile murder trial/earthquake/tsunami that week then I’m afraid you are going to make front page and your career is over.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 12:35 pm
One thing that doesn’t add up: How the hell did Richard Worth get into her hotel room?
Assuming he is not James Bond (picks locks) or Spiderman (spider-crawled across outside of building), then presumably he was in her room from the outset.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 1:25 pm
Pat – they went to the room, drank wine and she got ‘tired’ and went to bed. Hell, unless she passed out and was unable to give consent, Worth did nothgin wrong (in terms of being with a woman in her hotel room, drinking and watching her get undressed and into bed). I think this woman saw a chance to make some hay and now that chance has evaporated.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 2:01 pm
John KEY may have felt that WORTH was not suitable to be a Cabinet Minister on the word of Phil GOFF. He may have felt entitled to believe that GOFF was an honourable man, that his word was his bond. It seems to me that subsequent events exposed GOFF as a dishonourable man and his allegations lacking verity. The Indian and the Korean have also been exposed as being at least devious..WORTH has not been publicly shown as being guilty of anything except possibly unconfirmed behaviour un-befitting a Minister. Surely one aspect the Police will be considering is whether the complaint of the Korean is malicious and a waste of their time.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 2:35 pm
As a supporter of the Nats and JK I have to say this is not a good look. Good governance is all about principles and perception and the perception that good principles have been followed.
The old governnace paradigm be it government or corproate of ‘trust me i know what Im doing” is over dead and buried.
If you want to be seen as a practitioner of good governance then you must ensure that not only do you follow the principles but you explain your actions within the principles.
JK is giving ammo to the enemy as long as he doesnt clearly explain the reasons he fired Worth.
Leaving a vacumn for others to fill is not good governance. It maybe that what fills the vacumn is incorrect.
A good leader always makes sure his people know and understand clearly the reasons for his decisions.
That how you earn trust in the 21st Centry
Not be fudging the answers.
Because if you cant convince the people you are right you cannot be their leader
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 2:56 pm
MyNameIsJack is our very own WMD against Liarbore.
Every time he posts he makes me think of Liarbores hypocrisy and lack of ethics.
Wonderful.
Keep it up mate.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 4:00 pm
Bugger!
Meant to include mickysavage in that.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 4:01 pm
The point missed by all is the following: It does not matter that Worth did nothing illegal. It does not matter if the woman invited him into her room. It does not matter what Goff dribbled on about. The fact is that here is a man who showed a great lack of judgement, he did something that even in today’s society is still believed to be of dubious moral quality (A bit like signing your name to stuff you did not do). He cheated or wanted to cheat on his wife. The Prime Minister obviously felt that he was not happy with that type of behavior and sacked him. Why does he not publicly explain? Try this. Embarrassing Worths wife and family even more, serves no purpose. And for those who so desperately want to know, go buy a Penthouse or a porn movie FFS. But then being a man with integrity or taking others into account is not something Labour supporters understand.
Just look at Goffs behavior in this matter. Look at the way Mallard behaves most days.
MNIJ and Mickey Savage – A man was standing, banging his head against a wall repeatedly, when he was asked why he was doing it, he replied, “Because it feels so good when I stop”. You two remind me of that guy.
Vote:July 3rd, 2009 at 6:21 pm
One domino falls. How long before Neelam Plain and Tall spills the beans and the whole thing is revealed to be a sting operation set up against the weakest link in National’s chain? Labour’s dirty tricks will soon be public knowledge, mickey, and you can expect a backlash.
Vote: