The sudden announcement of Rebecca Falkingham’s departure is giving the CEO no time to defend herself from serious questions about her behaviour. The rush to fill her position is also raising concerns the Board has already decided who it wants in the job.

The original statement from the NDIA was stark and sudden.

“This is a very personal and deeply distressing time for her and her family. She has requested that all persons and organisations respect her privacy. The thoughts of the NDIA Board and all Agency staff are with Rebecca.”

What was particularly unfortunate for Falkingham was that her leave immediately followed extraordinary allegations raised by Rick Moreton in the Saturday Paper in early July. Internal emails indicated Falkingham had extraordinarily and unilaterally reached down into the normal workings of the department to remove support from a participant.

Documents indicated that on June 7 last year, possibly simply in reaction to talkback radio criticism, she had instructed her executive team to revoke a participant’s access to the scheme. This was prioritised over other matters, including finding out if recordings broadcast on the radio had been edited (they had) and the facts of the case (entitlements were, after appeal, restored).

If the allegations were correct they would have raised serious legal questions about the propriety of her actions and Falkingham’s ability to continue in her role.

Unfortunately the cancer diagnosis and treatment prevented Falkingham from having the opportunity to respond to these questions. It appears that almost at exactly the same time as they appeared she began treatment for cancer, although the NDIA has not provided any detail about when the CEO’s leave began.

Nor, initially, did the Agency, until the sudden press release on 21 July, which disclosed Scott McNaughton and others had been informally performing key CEO functions as part of continued agency operations.

This appears pretty astounding, hence further questions over the recruitment process.

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Health Minister Mark Butler insists he does not doubt the importance of choosing the right person to head the NDIA.

“This is a huge program. It absorbs a lot of taxpayer dollars,” he said yesterday. “I want to see a really outstanding individual appointed to head this agency.”

Which is great. But that’s why it’s surprising - especially if the job’s so vital he wants the best possible applicant to fill it - that submissions for this critical position close within ten days.

It’s difficult to imagine a more rushed process. Butler says he “wants them to hasten in a way that ensures that they get the right choice”, which displays why he is such a brilliant politician. He can combine two conflicting ideas into one sentence without any sign of discord.

Whether the NDIA has quite the same fluency will become apparent over the coming months.

Scott McNaughton has now stepped in as acting CEO. Before this, he served as Deputy CEO Service Delivery - a key position responsible for overseeing delivery of supports and services across the nation.