A not-for-profit organisation that charges Australians up to $120 to camp out in memory of Anzac war veterans is under investigation over concerns it did not pass on money it raised to veterans’ associations.
The Camp Gallipoli Foundation received $2.5m in grants from the Department of Veterans’ Affairs to hold sleep-out events in every state on the eve of the Anzac centenary in 2015.
Fairfax media claimed the foundation’s chief executive, Chris Fox, may have personally profited from the events by charging management fees worth up to $1.5m a year through commercial companies owned by his family and an associate. It said he earned $150,000 himself as chief executive.
Fairfax asked the foundation and Fox to provide proof it had donated money raised to veterans’ charities but said the foundation was unwilling to do so.
The veterans’ affairs minister, Dan Tehan, said on Sunday: “I was extremely concerned to learn of the allegations made about the conduct of Camp Gallipoli and its associated companies.
“As a consequence, I have asked the department to conduct a review into the funding arrangements for Camp Gallipoli and provide advice on the charitable donations they have committed to make.”
“It would be disturbing if any company or individual tried, or gave the impression of trying, to gain a commercial advantage by the inappropriate use of the word ‘Anzac’.
“My department has now written to Camp Gallipoli advising them their permit to use the word ‘Anzac’ has been revoked.”
The foundation’s constitution states it will use the surplus from the Camp Gallipoli commemorative events to support RSL branches and Legacy Clubs and other similar charities.
But according to Fairfax the national leadership of the RSL and Legacy said they had not received any financial donations from Camp Gallipoli.
The Camp Gallipoli Foundation responded in a statement on Sunday rejecting “allegations that any moneys, especially funds provided through the Anzac centenary grants program, were used for purposes other than intended”.
All funds from the centenary grants program were subject to proper and thorough external auditing by PricewaterhouseCoopers, it said. That included auditing each payment from the department that was paid directly to the supplier for running events in all states.
Fox told Guardian Australia claims he, his family or an associate owned companies which benefited from management fees were “totally and utterly factless”.
“No management fee has been paid at all. There’s a provision in the foundation accounts for a salary, which is standard. I am entitled to live,” he said.
Fox denied that any of Camp Gallipoli’s suppliers were owned by his family or associates. “We are in Adelaide, and everyone knows someone. But our service provision is contracted out and we go through a tender process. Our accounts have all been audited.”
Fox said Camp Gallipoli broke even in its first year so there was no cash surplus to donate to RSL and Legacy. However, he said Camp Gallipoli had spent funds on a number of programs that benefited the veterans’ associations including a school education campaign about Anzac Day and a special ceremony at the national war memorial.
The foundation said it looked forward to events planned across Australia on Sunday, the eve of Anzac Day, 2016.
Camp Gallipoli is no stranger to controversy. In 2015 Target pulled Camp Gallipoli products branded with the the word Anzac after the Department of Veterans’ Affairs advised they were inappropriate.
The veterans affairs minister also canned a joint Camp Gallipoli and Woolworths ad campaign featuring the word Anzac without permission. Woolworths’ ad campaign featured images of Anzac soldiers and described them as “fresh in our memories”, prompting a large social media backlash over commercialisation of the Anzac memory.
