The authorities have to, and should be, taking a serious look at the agreement the government had with Vitals Global Healthcare.

Back in 2019 an inquiry was launched looking into the way in which the government had granted the hospital privatisation concession to Vitals Global Healthcare. In addition to this, there is also a court case ongoing by PN MP Adrian Delia to take the hospitals back.

What has emerged over the past months regarding VGH, not only raises eyebrows, but continued to give credence to the very serious concerns over the original deal.

The National Audit Office had issued a report last December. Among the many, many issues the NAO found, it said that serious concerns regarding the regularity of use of funds provided by the Government were highlighted by a Ministry For Health advisor, who alleged that funds provided by the Government to VGH were being channelled outside of the company.

“This understanding was based on the premise that despite the concession fee paid by Government being sufficient to cover existing operations, the VGH had accumulated significant creditors. Also highlighted by the MFH was that the financial information being requested from the VGH was not being submitted, that the Concessionaire had failed to obtain financing and was late in submitting the obligatory financial statements.” The NAO recommended further investigation by the competent authorities in terms of any possible financial mismanagement and misuse of public funds in connection with this concession awarded by Government.

Now, Steward Health Care Malta has revealed that, when it took over the concession from VGH, it discovered “a large number of assets and funds” that had been used for purposes outside of the concession’s scope, which include automobiles and apartments. It said it has divested itself of these assets.

Sources who wished to remain anonymous told this newsroom that these were luxury apartments and automobiles using funds given by the government.

All of this begs the question… What exactly was the government doing? Where were the checks and balances? Where was the government’s watchful eye on how public funds were being used!

There are a number of ministers and former ministers who have a lot to answer for on the VGH deal.

What exactly were those who were meant to keep track of the concession doing back then?

The NAO in its December report had said that none of the major concession milestones were achieved in the period within which the concession was under the control of the VGH.

The deal with VGH was meant to favour the people. If it didn’t, then the government either seriously dropped the ball, or something far worse was afoot.

The NAO said in its report that it “is of the opinion that several of the failures that emerged at the implementation stage of the concession may readily be traced to the selection of the VGH as the concessionaire, a poor choice that set the stage for what was to come. The negotiations that quickly followed selection were similarly flawed, conditioned to an extent by the structural anomalies and organisation of the Ministry for Energy and Health and the general ill-preparedness in terms of what was sought by Government through this concession. None of the milestones set were achieved by the VGH. Although responsibility for this failure rests primarily with the VGH, the situation of default was allowed to persist and enabled by the Government representatives’ successive waivers through which the Concessionaire’s inability to secure financing was condoned. Aside from failing to deliver an improved health infrastructure, this concession fell short of achieving another critical objective set by Government, that is, the shifting of project expenses off the Government’s balance sheet. The NAO’s concern regarding these key shortcomings is heightened when seen within the context of the multiple failures in good governance, accountability and transparency that characterise this flawed concession”