Dear Australian Skills Quality Authority,

1. I noted your advice as to lack of record on OEC and AIPE. We had a written agreement with AIPE and assumed that it had the obligation to advise you of this and fail understand why this did not happen. Because of the following matter this has been terminated but enquire as to what should now occur.

2. I appreciate your advice that my companies name appears on your records as being associated with a complaint to your office concerning an operative of Zada Marketing P/L

3. If this record remains uncorrected it would be most damaging to my business and reputation - I wish to place the following facts on record surrounding the complaint to that aim.:

4. The following facts can be made by statutory declaration if necessary:-

(i) Our company (OEC) entered into an agreement with AIPE in 2014

(ii) In July 2015 we entered into a subcontract with Careers Advisors (CA) which was approved by AIPE

(iii) As part of our security checks we requested from CA a list of its employees which was supplied including Viranda Singh.

(iv) We then gave CA our login details to allow recruiting to proceed.

(v) Unknown to us Viranda Singh carried on a business independently of CA and had no authority from us to act for OEC or to give our login details to anyone except as a representative of CA.

(vi) Until this affair commenced I did not know or was made aware of this business or what activities it carried on.

(vii) We understand that again I repeat) without our knowledge authority or consent implied or otherwise that an operative of the firm Zada Marketing P/L engaged in inappropriate behaviour resulting in a complaint to your office.

(viii) I have been informed that after investigation no action was taken by your office on the matter but cannot be certain of the truth of this.

(Ix) It appears that some how our login details were involved in the complaint. Again I repeat that if such was the case it was without our authority knowledge or consent.

(x) The matter was brought to AIPE’s attention but not to ours and accordingly without notice our agreement was terminated by them claiming a breach of our contract.

(xii) We then terminated the contract of CA as it could only have been by its agency that the events occurred at all.

Again OEC have no association or contact with Zada Marketing.

AIPE was a partner of Open Education Colleges, Open Education Colleges sub contracted Careers Advisors which they sub contracted Zada Marketing without any approval from Open Education Colleges or AIPE. Open Education Colleges received an email from AIPE stating this below;

Dear Belinda,

AIPE received notification from the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA) regarding misleading representation and/or false advertisement.

Zada Marketing and/or its consultants were found advertising VET courses without identifying the issuer of the VET qualification or statement of attainment and not including the code and title of the training products as published on the National Register.

The above practises impacted our organisation as we were seen, as not meeting the requirements of NVR Act and the Standards.

ASQA directed us to a Facebook page link. AIPE investigated the Facebook page and found it which displayed the AIPE logo and a series of courses.

As part of our internal investigation we contacted to the owner and creator of the Facebook page who confirmed that they were employed by Zada Marketing to represent AIPE.

The Facebook page owner advised he never received training from AIPE, but was instead called into Zada Marketing office for a quick brief and to receive his AIPE login details.

The AIPE login details provided are the same as linked to your Service Provider account and specifically to Careers Advisors.

Regards

Dimitra Tzanos

I am very concerned about this incident as it has affected our brand and contract with AIPE due to Zada Marketings actions provided by ASQA? Due to this incident, how is this linked to us form ASQA?

Can you please advise?

My company is suffering substantial damage as a result of the record on your files and seem to have been judged guilty by association for something of which we are innocent.

Please advise as to what steps can be taken to remedy the record as to our supposed involvement especially in any area where third parties have access to same. Also please advise what entries you may have which are detrimental to our companies reputation.

As legal proceeding have been threatened against us please advise on the above as a matter of urgency.

Yours faithfully,

Belinda Agnew
Director
Open Education Colleges Pty Ltd
0459 065 086
1300 58 98 45