Foreign Affairs Minister George Vella says that it was not he who appointed Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi’s wife Sai Mizzi Liang as a trade envoy to China, but made the point – in justification of Mrs Mizzi Liang’s remuneration – that if you pay peanuts, you get monkeys.

Speaking to this newsroom, despite jokingly saying that he felt envious of the pay packages certain consultants enjoyed both during the previous legislature and now (the reason being that the remuneration of Ministers pales in comparison with that of certain trade envoys or government consultants) he said that if one paid such consultants peanuts, you would get monkeys in return.

Dr Vella was replying to questions posed by this newsroom as to whether or not he considers it is fair on the taxpayer, ambassadors or former trade envoys that Mrs Mizzi Liang enjoys a pay package three times larger than her predecessor, Paul Cardona.

The Malta Independent had run an article highlighting the fact that Mrs Mizzi Liang is paid much more than trade envoy to China Paul Cardona was.

“Mrs Mizzi Liang comes under the remit of Malta Enterprise,” Mr Vella said. “Our Ministry’s role is to ensure that our ambassador in Beijing coordinates as much as possible with Mrs Mizzi.

“Mrs Mizzi’s role is different to an ambassador’s since it is specifically that of a trade envoy,” he added.

                                                                               

Malta’s consul to Libya was never suspended

In an exclusive interview with The Malta Independent to appear in tomorrow’s newspaper, Dr Vella strongly denies that Marisa Farrugia, Malta’s consul to Libya, was suspended over allegations of involvement in a visa racket.

He said that a number of Maltese and Libyan nationals played an integral part in the release of AFM Major Martin Galea, including Ms Farrugia.

Reports had surfaced in a section of the media that Ms Farrugia was being investigated on allegations regarding a visa racket.

Dr Vella asked: “Was she ever charged with any crime? She has a clean slate to continue providing her services,” he said, while highlighting the fact that Ms Farrugia is currently working within the Foreign Ministry’s Mediterranean desk.

“She has an expertise of the Arabic language and a vast knowledge of the Arab world; she has a lot to offer,” he said.

When asked if she was had actually been actually suspended temporarily, Dr Vella strongly denied this claim, going a step further and questioning whether she had ever been investigated by the police in connection with the alleged case, implying that she had assisted the police in their investigations but was not actually investigated herself.

He also denied that she was sidelined by government officials at Malta International Airport on her arrival in Malta with Major Galea.

“There are photos of the Prime Minister congratulating Ms Farrugia; she was the first one to come down from the plane. I have heard such claims before and I cannot understand what you are driving at,” Dr Vella said.

“The government’s main motive was to see that Galea was safe and sound: no more, no less,” he pointed out.

 

The full interview with Dr Vella will be published in tomorrow’s edition of The Malta Independent