The Nationalist Party has called on the Police Commissioner and the police force to investigate the Rigid Hull Inflatable Boats (RHIBs) scandal within Transport Malta, saying that the ongoing "internal investigation cannot result in a credible outcome with the doubts there are and allegations made."
The scandal revolves around RHIBS that had been purchased but found not to be compliant. The National Audit Office had found that "the lack of segregation of duties and the weak internal controls noted in all phases of the procurement of the rigid hull inflatable boats by Transport Malta resulted in insufficient oversight and inadequate risk management which contributed significantly to the suboptimal project outcome."
Recently, the PN alleged that some Transport Malta workers were told to lie under oath when testifying about the RHIBs scandal which afflicted the authority last summer.
On Tuesday, the PN called on the police to take over the internal investigation "without any further delays." The PN said that "this issue has been going on for months, Transport Malta knows [this], and today, we still don't know how we are going to proceed on this issue." This was said during a press conference held by Nationalist Party MPs Ivan Castillo, Mark Anthony Sammut, and Darren Carabott.
Castillo reiterated the news that emerged on Saturday, that Transport Malta CEO Jonathan Borg stepped down a day after the PN alleged that some Transport Malta workers were instructed to lie under oath. Sammut said that this scandal is another addition to the list of scandals that have developed within Transport Malta. He added that no certification or registration was to be found on the Rigid-Hull Inflatable Boats (RHIBs) that were acquired for use by the authority.
He continued to say that Transport Malta has been used multiple times "to give consultancies to people within the inner circles." He also mentioned other scandals.
Sammut said that "the public has the right to know the full truth" since the authority uses public funds. He also said that "these rackets are a symptom of authority", and that after competent people and people with values left these authorities and institutions, these spaces have become reminiscent of a "Labour band club."
He added that "this is a perfect recipe for abuses to occur in the name of partisan interest".
Castillo said that these boats were not certified to be "sea-worthy", and were put in a shed, unfit for use, "where they still are."
"This is a shame", Castillo said.
Castillo said that, with this information, one can see the state that the authority is in. Furthermore, the Nationalist MP said that one of two scenarios could exist: "either the Government doesn't know what's happening in this authority and is depending on the PN to reveal information to learn what is going on and take action; or the Government knows what is going on and is hiding these scandals, being forced to take action after they are uncovered by the Nationalist Party", he said.
Darren Carabott labelled this instance as a serious pitfall in the handling of public funds and in good governance. Carabott quoted the Auditor General's report for accounts of 2022 which read that "all three phases related to the procurement of the RHIBs, namely planning, the evaluation of the contract, and monitoring stages, were lacking." This means that "there were serious drawbacks in all stages of these purchases" and that this doesn't even account for the registration issues, he said.
Carabott also questioned why the police are not yet investigating this case, given the details that have emerged. The three MPs said that on top of workers from Transport Malta (within the Maritime Sector Enforcement Unit) "being bullied by their superior after being told to lie under oath", "there are hundreds of fines that were not processed."
In addition, "Those being investigated are still in their same positions, still have access to information they are being investigated over, and the same board of investigation is in contact with them", Castillo said.