It may appear somewhat unorthodox for a newspaper editor to write a letter to himself. But given the fact that allegations of financial irregularities at Din l-Art Ħelwa were raised in our letters section, it is only appropriate that the following clarification is printed in the corresponding section of today’s issue.

Following a letter penned by James A. Tyrrell (Questionable accounts, TMIS, 27 February) which made a number of allegations of financial irregularities at the non-governmental organisation, I took up an offer to review, in detail, the organisation’s accounts as suggested by DLH executive president Simone Mizzi in her reply to Mr Tyrrell last week.

I do not wish to unnecessarily protract the issue at hand, and in the process give the matter more importance than it is worth, and will as such refrain from delving into the minute details of the NGO’s accounts.

We do, however, feel we have a responsibility to DLH’s membership base, the sponsors of its various projects and its volunteers who generously dedicate their time, to clarify the most outstanding points raised by Mr Tyrrell.

As should be inferred from the headline above, from my three-hour meeting with DLH officials, it has been demonstrated beyond any doubt that there are no questionable accounts on DLH’s books.

Suffice it to say that one of the main accusations resulted from a misreading of the accounts. This was the serious charge that the accounts show an irregularity of some €25,000 through the workings of the euro-Maltese lira exchange rate in which only the expenditure side, it was argued, of the equation was “inflated” between the 2007 and 2008 accounts.

This was the first issued I raised with DLH officials, who correctly pointed out that Mr Tyrrell had erroneously referred to the 2006 column of the accounts spreadsheet rather than the 2007 column, as he should have done.

As for the question of why revenue is outstripped by expenditure, an organisation such as DLH first carries out work on properties placed under its care, and it is reimbursed at a later stage. As Ms Mizzi pointed out, it would be worrying if a non-profit organisation such as DLH were operating in the black as opposed to being in the red as it is.

It was also explained how certain legacy funds and ‘other expenses’ were spent on an extension and extensive refurbishment of its premises in Valletta, which is expected to reap rewards for the organisation in the medium to long-term, amongst other initiatives.

Moreover, it is also not inappropriate for DLH to occupy posts on government environmental and urban rehabilitation bodies. After all, who better to occupy such posts – and there are not that many in question actually – than people who are conservation-minded?

Any negative impression of the organisation caused through the publication of the accusatory letter is regretted. Anyone with further queries related specifically to this correspondence is invited to call me personally at our offices for any further information that could be imparted.

David Lindsay

Editor – The Malta Independent on Sunday