No, I am not referring to China Connection, as in the Bruce Lee movie, although I can see a link there. The 1972 martial arts film is in fact known also as 'Fist of Fury', in parallel to the fury provoked in the revelations this week that the hitherto mysterious Macbridge is linked to the Chinese consultant of Shanghai Electric Chen Cheng.
The secret company is suspected of having been set up so that money would be channelled to Labour protagonists. Those funds would have added up to our electricity bill, together with the other un-estimated cost of having political debate lingering on to a matter which should have been our god-sent labour solution way back in 2013. Fist of fury indeed.
The money was allegedly planned to go from Macbridge to Keith and Konrad in what would be just the latest in a series of 'overheads' adding up finally to our electricity bill.
Let's do some maths, shall we? Last year we heard how Electrogas was given an Amnesty of 40 million euros in excise duty. A unilateral tax holiday in gross and direct contravention to state aid rules. To those 40 million, we need to add another 16.8 million euros in 'success fees' which Electrogas shareholders paid themselves for securing financing a good two years before the gas behemoth was actually producing any energy.
Adding to these direct 'payments', let us not forget the 360 million euro bank guarantee courtesy of Bank of Valletta.
Apart for the bills and the fury for you and for me, the trail of alleged corruption behind the deal of a state owned Chinese company buying 33% stake in Enemalta has a bearing which goes well beyond local politics.
Over the past decade, the EU has seen an increasing interest from third countries to invest and own critical infrastructure in the Union. In large part, these investments make pure business sense, in a few cases, however, foreign direct investment in EU countries needs to be scrutinised in a wider geo-political context.
Such is this imperative that in 2019, the Union adopted a Regulation specifically designed to set up screening mechanisms of Foreign Direct Investment from third countries. The Regulation is meant to provide for systematic exchange of information between member states and the European Commission for all FDI proposals or developments related thereto, in particular where these relate to key areas of EU policy such as the Union's Trans-European Energy Network or funding programmes such as Horizon 2020.
Our local energy producer and its network are indeed part of the Trans-European Energy Network and as such have benefitted in the past, and, one should hope, in the future from projects under that cap as well as under several other EU programmes. The whole Electrogas Project falls squarely within the remit of the EU Regulation on screening of foreign investments. The recent revelation is hence of direct relevance to the EU Regulation and should be notified accordingly to all EU member states and the European Commission for information and possibly, for further action.
Will Robert Abela's government do this? Or is it ashamed to come to terms with the fact that the two biggest public utilities contracts are eyes deep in the mud of alleged corruption and collusion? Will the trail of evidence between Cheng and main Labour Party actors be treated to the ridicule of 'empty box files' that now led to custody in Kordin for Schembri or will the Government for once do what is right before it is constrained to do so by all other circumstances?
This governments' favourite tantrum nowadays is that the institutions are working. Institutions are meant to prevent wrongdoing, not just to react to such to patch up Government's image 6 years later.
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