AFIC turmoil deepens as 'usurpers' take over halal income
A group of former members of the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils, who staged an extraordinary coup last week, have opened a new bank account and are collecting and spending halal certification fees.
The revelation emerged in the NSW Supreme Court on Wednesday as the national Islamic organisation tried to force out the group of "usurpers" who
entered AFIC's Zetland offices late at night last week and changed the locks.
Hafez Kassem, who voluntarily resigned last year, now claims he was only on temporary leave and has "rightfully" returned to his role as president.
His group of former members, some of whom were banned or sacked for maladministration, convened a meeting on February 11 and installed themselves as the executive committee and passed no-confidence motions in all others, including Keysar Trad, who was elected unopposed to replace Mr Kassem in August.
They have taken over the running of AFIC, which administers millions of dollars worth of halal certification and runs six Islamic schools that the federal government found in 2015 were being exploited by AFIC for financial gain.
AFIC, led by Mr Trad, is suing Mr Kassem and eight others in a bid to force them out.
On Wednesday, Supreme Court Justice Robert McDougall said it was "absolutely appalling" that AFIC was preoccupied with "internal squabbling".
"It seems to me that there are far more important things that AFIC can be focusing on, one of which is the rise, fuelled by populist politics and government policies, of anti-Muslim sentiment in this country," he said. "It is something that I personally deplore."
The court heard that Agim Garana, who was banned from AFIC last year and sacked from Malek Fahd Islamic School amid revelations of financial impropriety, has been installed as general manager in the coup and has access to a National Australia Bank account set up on Tuesday night to collect AFIC's halal fees.
"Not only are monies going into the bank account but monies are going out of it," AFIC's barrister, Mark Ashhurst, SC, said.He argued that the February 11 meeting, convened by Mr Garana on behalf of Mr Kassem, was invalid under the Associations and Corporations Act.
Mr Kassem's group initially called the meeting, which requires support from 10 per cent of members, for January 28. Two days prior, it was "rescheduled" to February 11.
Mr Ashhurst said a meeting cannot be postponed once it is called. He said the 10 per cent support was faked using photocopied signatures and the meeting didn't comply with requirements such as circulating motions ahead of time.
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At the meeting, new motions had made it onto the agenda such as one reinstating Mr Kassem as president.
Mr Kassem's barrister, Anthony Cheshire, SC, argued that the February 11 meeting was a "new meeting" rather than a postponement.
Justice McDougall questioned why the dispute couldn't be sorted by convening a special meeting in which every AFIC member voted for their preferred leaders. He suggested appointing an independent receiver or a committee comprising both "factions" to run AFIC in the interim.
He adjourned the matter to March 3 and ordered that the "usurpers" be given access to AFIC's funds so they can pay bills in the meantime. Mr Trad was granted interim access to the Zetland office.
"The longer AFIC continues to be besieged by this internal squabbling, greater is the fuel given to those who appear to be fomenting anti-Muslim sentiment in this country," he said. "I encourage the parties to negotiate a way forward."
AFIC will return to court on Thursday to represent Malek Fahd in a battle against the state government, which is trying to recoup $8 million.
