Before Saturday's Christchurch earthquake, it was the financial world that was shaken by shock waves eminating from its near neighbour, Timaru. South Canterbury Finance (SCF) collapsed, literally in the same way as many homes did around Canterbury yesterday. While many of these homes can be re-built, it is doubtful whether the same can be said of Hubbard's business empire.

When you look into the pictures of Hubbard, he seems like your long lost grandfather or great uncle. Kindly, gentle looking, even serene. According to the people of Timaru, Alan can do no wrong. He has donated thousands of dollars to good causes in the area and assisted numerous business start ups (so the story goes).

But what happened to the Hubbard empire reminds me of an old fairy tale. Remember the story about Old Mother Hubbard who found nothing in the cupboard? Well, that was what happened to her actual namesake last week when the liquidators moved in to try and salvage the dirty mess of poor investments. What the liquidators are going to have to do to untangle the mess is very similar to what the people of Christchurch tried to do yesterday on sewerage strewn streets - wade through the mess and hope for the best.

And the National Government has already had plenty of practise in handing out dollars to Canterbury this week as SCF was the recipient of a nearly $1.3 billion taxpayer bailout. What frustrates me and others on the left is the sheer hypocrisy of government in doing this. It's not okay to bail out welfare recipients or the growing army of unemployed apparently. As a WINZ client, I had to pay back, for example, an advance on benefit to get the new reading glasses I needed before starting a job some years back. But the rules are different for wealthy business people - get in the hock and the government will bail you out, no strings attached.

Yes, I was all for the government guaranteed deposit scheme when Labour introduced it in the dying days of its administration in 2008. This move was rightly prompted in the wake of the global financial crash. An urgent measure was needed to ensure the stability of our financial system and in particular the banks. If there had been a run on the banks without such a scheme, then the economy would have teetered on the edge of collapse. And that would have been no good for anybody.

As a socialist, I would have strongly urged a different solution - the complete nationalisation of South Canterbury Finance without any compensation to its previous owner, Alan Hubbard. Furthermore, as a believer in progressive taxation, I believe that he should be made to repay every cent to his depositors himself. I say that because I have real difficulty in believing the croc story that he is completely broke. After all, it was reported that prior to his trust funds being frozen, he offered to pour $250 million or so into SCF as a means of recapitalising it.

Another thing that caught my eye was John Armstrong's New Zealand Herald political column yesterday. I am no fan of Armstrong's views (particularly after his attack on the Unite union a couple of weeks ago). But he insinuated directly in yesterday's column that Hubbard had apparently hired the services of a 'top flight' Wellington PR firm. No wonder as now everything makes perfect sense - the recent friendly Listener article which made Hubbard out to be a saint whose company had been untouched by the global financial crisis. It told of how Hubbard was a caring, grandfatherly type of guy, a man whom had stood by the South Canterbury community for years and lived humbly as signified by his ownership of a green Volkswagen. Apparently, no flashy life style and dishonest financial practises for this wonderful man.

I can't help but think that Hubbard was inspired to get some PR help when he possibly knew that the liquidators and the Serious Fraud Office were beginning to sniff around. Only a fortnight after that article appeared, they struck and the government became concerned due to so many thousands of people holding SCF shares and other investment instruments. At this juncture, the 'spontaneously' created Alan Hubbard support group sprang up in Timaru to organise protest marches in defence of a man under great attack. The blame was pinned instead on the new management team who had deposed Hubbard and gave him the laughable African dictator-inspired title of 'president for life' on the company board.

Then, on the night when his company went into liquidation, I watched a TVNZ report which probably revealed the man behind the mask. When approached by a television crew, he told them to 'bugger off' in the most grumpiest way imaginable. Yes, I can appreciate that he and his wife Jean were under immense stress but I was left wondering as to who the real Alan Hubbard is - maligned financial genius or poor business decision maker?

The real truth won't be know until the liquidators have unwound all the bad investments from the good. In the meantime, irrespective of the reason, taxpayers have been lumped with a huge bill to cover the company's failure. Perhaps Hubbard and his band of supporters might like to ponder what the $1.3 billion given to SCF could have been better spent on? Paying striking radiographers what they are truly worth. Creating more student places at our polytechs and universities. Building much needed housing for our thousands of homeless people. Giving welfare beneficiaries and ordinary pensioners more money. Helping with the Christchurch earthquake clean up.

Instead, I would ask Hubbard and those who succeeded him at SCF to come forward and account for why their investors and the government have been shortchanged. Don't hide behind PR spin - come out and tell the truth, however painful that might be.