Lies deception and potential criminality seems to sum up actions of Post Office and Fujitsu staff and agents. Here’s a part closing statement by Ms Watt, National Federation of Sub-Postmasters, Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry 02 February 2024.

Reading this, you may substitute Post Office for [your bank] and wonder if there is any difference.

Ms Watt states:
It (National Federation of Sub-Postmasters)wants the Inquiry to shine a light where there have been lies, deception and potential criminality. And, of course, that is a reference to the actions of the Post Office and Fujitsu … not the hundreds of sub-postmasters, assistants, Crown Office employees who the Post Office so wrongly, and knowingly wrongly, pursued through the courts with such great vigour.

It is no exaggeration to say that the evidence throughout Phase 4, taken either individually or collectively, has been nothing short of extraordinary, but not in a good way: extraordinary in its often deliberate obfuscation.

I use that word advisedly: the action of making something obscure, unclear or unintelligible, and several, indeed many, candidates dates for that immediately confirm to mind.

Obfuscation, in that never have so many failed to remember so much about what was their daily job, or even their previous jobs, or about their employer, or even who was in their team, or even what their team was called, or who led it, or, crucially, who told them there was nothing wrong with Horizon, or anything at all about those whose lives they had ruined.

Apparently, it’s just one big collective memory failure: “I don’t remember, I can’t recall”, from one witness after another. Their evidence could be described as a collective “See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil”.

Here Lies Deception

Unfortunately, the fourth element of that ancient saying was simply not present anywhere in the Post Office: do no evil.

Alongside that, ran the refrain “It wasn’t me” or “It wasn’t my job” or “It was someone else’s job but I can’t remember who”.

The colloquial version of the Scots criminal law defence of incrimination sums it up perfectly:

“It wisnae me, a big boy done it and ran away.”

Extraordinary in that some – and some might say a lot – of what was heard simply defied belief:

  • Witness statements as evidence for court proceedings being signed as truthful by witnesses who didn’t even write those statements;
  • So-called experts instructed, without expertise or, even if they did, without having all the relevant information;
  • Witnesses who still think those they investigated and whose convictions were quashed, are actually still guilty.

The way these people did their jobs, whether the IT side, technical support, software, legal, auditing, investigating and prosecuting. That hundreds were wrongly convicted and their lives ruined.

On top of that are those who paid money to the Post Office for the alleged shortfalls. Again, pursued with a level of vigour that is almost indescribable.

Where is that money?

Tens of thousands, if not millions of pounds, apparently all in the pocket of the Post Office.

Was it funding their bonus or just going into the bottom line of profits?

How do we move forward with all these lies deception?