Former minister Austin Gatt - who was the minister responsible for Enemalta – today testified in the Public Accounts Committee which continued to discuss the Auditor General’s report on Enemalta’s fuel procurement.

“I never shied away from going to the Police Commissioner with information each time I had some suspicion that something shady was going down,” Dr Gatt said.

“Our government stopped the biggest tender Malta ever witnessed,” Mr Gatt said in a bid to show that the then PN government acted in a transparent manner.

He was referring to a 26-million-euro IT system which was planned for Mater Dei. He said that he suspected information on the tender was being leaked and his report to the police led to an individual being arraigned.

“Our government also reported individuals – despite the fact that we were well aware of the fact that they were Nationalist Party sympathisers – who were involved in the cash for licences scandal,” Dr Gatt continued.

Gatt quizzed on abysmal minute-keeping by fuel procurement committee

Mr Gatt said he was not told that the fuel procurement committee’s minute-keeping was abysmal. He was replying to a question made by Labour MP Owen Bonnici on whether he felt the way the minutes were kept was satisfactory for him. The minutes are understood to have been scribbled down.

“I would have given a ministerial directive that this is not the way minutes should be kept had I been alerted, even though I would have been criticised for doing so,” Dr Gatt said.

Dr Bonnici remarked that he had to rely solely on a newspaper report which had revealed the oil scandal when asking certain questions since some individuals who were meant to testify did not. He was referring to certain individuals who were called to testify in front of PAC but who opted not to answer certain questions, or no questions at all, since they would incriminate themselves.

On MOBC’s trading halt, he said that he took the decision and did not seek advice. A government should not compete with the private sector or the government risk millions by trading in oil, he explained.

On Enemalta’s bad governance which took place under his watch, as was described by Dr Bonnici, Dr Gatt said that those found to have lacked in their profession or betrayed our trust, should be charged in court and if found guilty should be given an exemplary sentence.

Asked about Tancred Tabone’s chairmanship at Enemalta, Dr Gatt said that before Mr Tabone was appointed, he bounced his proposal off the then prime minister. The prime minister was happy to appoint Mr Tabone, Dr Gatt pointed out.

Enemalta lacked management structure in 2003

During today's session - which is under way - Dr Gatt said that in 2003 – a year before Malta joined the EU – Enemalta Corporation lacked a management structure, despite the fact that it had good engineers. But having good engineers in no way means they have good managerial skills, Dr Gatt said.

He was speaking in the context that tackling the management structure was a priority for the then government since Malta was about to join the EU.

Asked once again by Dr Bonnici whether he was aware of the fact that the minutes were kept in an abysmal manner, Dr Gatt reiterated that he was unaware but had he known he would have issued a directive.

Gatt says corruption still goes on, even with proper checks in place

He said that despite the fact that there are checks in place in certain government departments, corruption still goes on. Dr Bonnici asked Dr Gatt whether he was referring to some particular case where he suspected there was corruption and to say so in the event he knew.

Dr Bonnici asked Dr Gatt whether he was referring to the Gaffarena case. Dr Gatt said: “You should know as much as I know from the newspaper reports. There were strange things happening such as the case with Cafe Premier and the Lands Department.”

Dr Bonnici assured Dr Gatt that an auditor general report was issued on Cafe Premier.

Dr Gatt said that by simply having the minutes in place does not mean in any way that corruption won’t take place. Dr Bonnici said it would help though if the minutes were kept in an orderly manner, to which Dr Gatt replied: “I doubt it with the levels of corruption which exist.”

Dr Gatt said that as a minister he respected the law that he was only politically responsible for Enemalta when asked by PL MP Deborah Scehmbri whether he felt he lacked in his responsibilities as minister.

PN MP Jason Azzopardi chaired the PAC meeting.