ACA Founding members

How do you make a long story short on the interactions with likeminded people in life’s journey, resulting in the beginnings of the Anti-corruption Academy.

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Having a lifelong involvement in transport in Central Queensland, stretching back several generations from Maternal Great Grandparents’ horse teams, suppling chocking timber to Mt Morgan mine, to my Grandfathers Yaamba Road Bus Service and to my late Father Cec Hopkins Livestock Transport.

It was such influence from my late Father’s mistrust of government, sparked by the then Labor

Government forced acquisition of my Grandfather’s Yaamba Road Bus Service. This grew my father’s mis-trust of government, and politic was always high on topic of discussions, along with his interest in the word of the weekly B.A. Santamaria TV commentaries, especially in the Whitlam, Fraser era.

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If you need an introduction to government over reach, participation in the road transport industry will give you all that is required. In the transportation of live-stock over the years, you come across some interesting individuals, one of them was a grazier and good friend (Founding Member), the late Finlay Cocks of Diamond Dee Duaringa. Finlay, at the time received Queensland’s largest fine under the newly introduced Land clearing laws. It was one of many long conversations that knock your socks off, when completing paper work after loading stock at Diamond Dee.  Fin’s awareness prior to, and also, as he continued to gather knowledge over the years in the fray with bureaucracy over land clearing. Fin was a man known not to back down when things were not quite just right.

 

This is when I first heard the name David John Walter (DJW).  It was Fin’s introduction to David mid 2010 that developed into my long-term friendship with DJW.

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Around about this time I received a phone call from a Des Rowe (founding member) making inquiries as he is known to do. We had brief conversation. I did not hear from Des Rowe again as he moved from Central Queensland back to the Sunshine coast.

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During this period between 2015 to DJW court cases in 2018, I received the head spinning education of what transpired in the political and legal system of the Commonwealth. I organised to attend with Fin one of DJW’s Cairns court appearances. Due to work commitments and fortune has it, I was not able to attend the first court appearance. Although I attended the crucial DJW court cases where I was able to get valuable first-hand knowledge of DJW’s work and court room results.

 

I organised my brother Bryan Hopkins (founding member) to attend first court case with Fin, consequently at that Court case, both Bryan and Fin witnessed the assault of DJW in said court room.

 

Whilst attending the court case Fin and Bryan met Greg Trudehope. Greg conveyed to Bryan and Fin his own personal course within the current system. On Bryan and Fins’ return to Rockhampton, Fin phoned to fill me in on the events that transpired. Fin informed me to make contact with Greg with his interesting take. This led to several phone conversations over time with Greg’s endeavours, his association with and his introduction to the late Peter Boyle (founding member) whom happen to live in Rockhampton.

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This led me to getting to know Peter, a long-time campaigner against public officialdom over-reach, and many phone conversations with Peter and getting to know his friend, Kev Rankin (founding member).

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With the research I conducted and acquiring the mind-boggling information from DJW and other sources, Peter often commented to me over the phone, “I hate talking to you, every time I phone you, you tell me something new”.  Even though Peter had been in the battle for decades, he was amazed at the information I provided.  Peter was one of the originals that got Commonwealth Public Official campaign off the ground back when …. Unfortunately, Peter had kept to himself, he was suffering with liver cancer.

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After several years absent from Central Queensland, Des R returned and made contact again just a couple days prior to and attended the first meeting.

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I received a phone call one Monday in 2020 from Kev Rankin asking if I was going to the meeting tomorrow that Peter had organised. I told Kev that Peter in typical fashion never let me know.  A phone call was made to Peter to see what was organized and who was coming.  If it had not been for Kev phoning, the first meeting may never ever have transpired.

 

This started a phone marathon to get like-minded people to attend and thankfully, at short notice we achieved reasonable numbers in attendance.

 

As luck has it, the following day, the first meeting of the now Anti-Corruption Academy took place at Rockhampton Pipe Band Hall, the hire of which was organised by Kev. It was decided to meet every fortnight, then on Saturdays. It was just six weeks later that liver cancer got the upper hand with Peter’s passing.

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It was at the height of the covid lock-down (for the gullible) that the ACA had its largest attendance and that my office space became available and meetings were still held every fortnight on Sundays.

 

This is when ACA with Des R and myself hit the road and held the first speaking event (a fish out of water for yours truly) in Biloela followed by a further sixteen or so all over the state from Chinchilla to Townsville.

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Amongst the Chaos of covid, Des R showed me a Facebook video of a yahoo on a motor bike in Rockhampton and telling a QPS motor bike cop to “get ……..” in no uncertain terms. Des R tracked this yahoo down and turned out to be the late Justin Hursh. This led to the meeting of and the introduction of his good friend to the ACA and now ACA researcher, Jayden.

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It goes to show all these chance encounters could be said were meant to happen in its order.

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This is where ACA is today – built on the foundation of DJW’s work.