The Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (ASRC) is trying to find out what happened to its order of rapid antigen tests (RATs), which has yet to be fully delivered more than five weeks after the order was placed.
ASRC founder and chief executive Kon Karapanagiotidis said the Footscray-based organisation ordered RATs on January 3 in a bid to keep staff, volunteers and clients safe.
Mr Karapanagiotidis said the order was meant to take three to five days to arrive but the supplier contacted him to say that the order had been taken by the federal government.
The Department of Health has denied the claim.
“The Department of Health reaffirms that the Department has not requisitioned all RAT supplies within and entering Australia,” the department said in a statement.
“These claims are categorically untrue.”
While Mr Karapanagiotidis received a third of his order last week, he is demanding to know what happened to the rest of the order.
He said the ASRC is not the only charity affected.
“We’re not isolated as the only charity that this has happened to but we’re the only charity willing to publicly talk about it,” he said.
The issue is being investigated by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).
In a statement, the ACCC said information provided to it suggests that because of the strong demand for RATs, suppliers at various levels in the distribution chain are making decisions about which customers to supply.
“ACCC investigators are speaking with the suppliers involved and will look to address any misrepresentations identified,” ACCC chair Rod Sims said.
“The ACCC takes this opportunity to remind suppliers about the importance of honouring any contractual arrangements for supply, and of being honest about the reason why rapid antigen tests may currently be unavailable. Suppliers must be able to substantiate any claims they make about test availability, and we are asking them to do so.”
Mr Karapanagiotidis said the issue should never have occurred in the first place.
The ASRC’s supplier was contacted for comment.
