From Mr I.J. Zammit

Could Mrs Marlene Mizzi’s failed attempt to be returned to sit on Bank of Valletta’s board of directors been the chairman’s prerogative?

May I qualify that I am referring to the office of chairman which, over the years, has been in the political arena.

The Government-appointed chairman chairs the bank’s Annual General Meeting, which includes the election of the so-called six independent directors to represent ordinary shareholders.

Interestingly enough, at this directors’ election the unelected chairman may actually avail himself of approximately five to eight million proxy votes available from the institutional shareholders, who have a direct or indirect vested interest with government, parastatal or BOV entities. (Could this possibly constitute a conflict of interest?)

Consequently, the chairman could support candidates prompted by the shareholders he represents and thus arbitrarily eliminate any other candidate considered “persona non grata”.

This state of affairs would, of course, defy the whole purpose of holding directors’ elections.

It is also worth mentioning that BOV is classified as a privatised bank, with a minority government shareholding of just over 25 per cent, which is theoretically correct but in practice debatable.

I am certain that Mrs Mizzi was a vociferous member of that board and if it was time for change, some of the more permanent fixtures on the board should have been replaced, rather than people with a mind of their own.

To quote Mr Lino Spiteri (Talking Point – The Times, 29 October 2007) “…the government should divest itself of the right to appoint anyone to the board of directors of Bank of Valletta, including the chairman.” This would protect the bank against any interference by the political class and avoid any eventual embarrassing cautions by Brussels.

Ivor John Zammit

TA’ XBIEX