Criticism is piling up on the government following a National Audit Office report stating it had pushed through a parliamentary resolution to remove conditions on land in Sliema acquired by the Fortina Group which saw the private sector entity pay millions less than what an audit firm had valued, the National Audit Office has found.
Momentum: Joseph Muscat and Keith Schembri should be investigated for 'manoeuvres' to favour Fortina
Momentum, through its chairman Arnold Cassola, meanwhile said that Joseph Muscat and Keith Schembri should be investigated for their "manoeuvres" to favour Fortina, "a major PL donor."
Arnold Cassola, Momentum Chairperson, stated: "Over four years ago, I had requested an investigation by NAO into irregularities in land concessions by government to the Fortina Group, spearheaded by prime PL donor, Michael Zammit Tabona."
"Apart from the non-transparent behaviour of the Lands Authority, it is scandalous that Prime Minister Joseph Muscat himself got involved in the talks to speed up Fortina's interests, to the detriment of the Maltese taxpayer, and that his Chief of Staff, Keith Schembri, also convened meetings which he had no authority to convene or attend," Cassola said.
"Muscat and Schembri should be investigated for their non transparent manoeuvres to favour Fortina, whose owner is a major PL donor," he concluded.
Fortina case is the definition of 'filth' in Malta's governance - ADPD
The Fortina Hotel case is the definition of "trash" in the governance of the country, the ADPD stated on Monday.
The ADPD said that the case in question is a display of politically appointed people with affiliations to the Labour Party stealing €12.9 million from the Maltese people. It said that Joseph Muscat's Chief of Staff, Keith Schembri, and the leadership of the Lands Authority did this in this case, despite the Labour Party's rhetoric full of 'patriotic acting' and the waving of Maltese flags.
ADPD Secretary General Ralph Cassar said that €12.9 million could have meant a new school or two, new equipment and new medicine for healthcare, or ten new town squares in ten localities.
Cassar questioned what Prime Minister Robert Abela will do about this case. He also questioned when Lands Authority CEO Robert Vella will resign, as the ADPD Secretary General commented that Vella seemed to be involved in the concealment of the property valuation report according to the Auditor General's Fortina report.
The ADPD concluded that the government should collect the people's money back from Fortina.
Repubblika says government undermined procedures
Repubblika notes with anger the conclusions of the Auditor General's report on the agreement regarding the Fortina land. The report confirms what the public has long known: that Joseph Muscat's government deliberately undermined procedures to pass public wealth to his capitalist friends.
An important valuation report on the land was hidden so that the owners of Fortina could pay less and pocket more money. This was not a mistake. It was a conscious act of corruption, Repubblika said.
Once again Keith Schembri emerges at the centre of the manipulation, while Prime Minister Robert Abela continues to defend Muscat, it added. Abela does this despite the fact that Muscat moved directly from the office of the prime minister into the office of the Fortina owners, supposedly as their consultant. The same thing he did in the Vitals case. It is legitimate to suspect that Muscat was collecting his reward for corrupt behaviour, Repubblika said.
The report also confirms that James Piscopo, then a senior public official, admitted to giving Fortina inside information while they were negotiating with the government. He declared a conflict of interest - he had no other choice - but nothing stopped him from exploiting that conflict and getting paid by both sides of the negotiation. This is corruption in broad daylight, yet Piscopo continues to enjoy impunity.
The scandal also shows the poisonous closeness between big business and political parties. The Zammit Tabona family, owners of Fortina, are well-known donors of the Labour Party. This is Malta's version of Tangentopoli: part of the commercial profit from government favours is paid back in donations to the party. The losers are the Maltese people, who are robbed of resources and public land, whose democracy is weakened, and whose fair competition is damaged, leaving them poorer, Repubblika said.
The consequences are real. Corruption in this case lowered the value of nearby hotels and businesses in the Fortina area, weakened their financial standing, and destroyed the economic level playing field. On top of that, those who pay taxes were forced to subsidize the profits of a few, the NGO added.
The Fortina case is not an exception-it is part of a system. This is the system through which Muscat, Schembri, Piscopo and those around them captured the state to enrich themselves and their friends. This is the system Robert Abela continues to defend.
Repubblika called on the police and the Attorney General to act without further delay. There is no excuse when once again, with far fewer powers than they have, the Auditor General found the evidence that the police and Attorney General have been discarding for years.
The Prime Minister must stop defending the indefensible. Malta cannot move forward while those who carried out and those who continue to cover up corruption of this scale and impact continue to enjoy impunity, Repubblika said.