Momentum Leader Arnold Cassola on Tuesday said that the Fortina Land heist is the result of fraud and deceit by Joseph Muscat's Chief of Staff, Keith Schembri, and Lands Authority high officials, who hid the Grant Thornton €23 million evaluation from Parliament.

In the case of such fraud, according to Chapter 573 of the Laws of Malta, it is only the Attorney General, the State Advocate or a sitting MP who can file a court action to demand rescission of an illegal land transfer, Momentum said in a statement.

“Momentum is therefore challenging PL and PN MPs to file a court action to demand the rescission of the Fortina deed due to the proven fraud,” it said.

“A failure by MPs to file such a case would mean accepting the heist perpetrated at the expense of Maltese taxpayers,” the party said.

Cassola said: "The Fortina land heist casts doubts on the whole system when it comes to giving away public land. For example, why did the Abela administration choose the day in July 2023 when the Prime Minister said no in Parliament on the Jean Paul Sofia Inquiry, to pass on public land to private entities?”

“While we were all protesting in front of Parliament in favour of the Sofia Inquiry, Abela and Co. passed on public land in Qormi to the PAVI shopping complex for €4.9 million, when the original valuation was €14 million. How did the PN justify its vote in favour?”

“Also, in the same sitting, Minister Silvio Schembri had insisted on granting a 65-year temporary emphyteusis to Fortina, despite the fact that the Fortina owners had already illegally extended their hotel lido and had taken over 18,000 square metres of the sea facing the hotel.  The PN voted against,” Cassola observed.

"Why did Minister Schembri insist on gifting Fortina land and sea it had illegally occupied, at the time when the whole country's attention was riveted on the Sofia public Inquiry debate"?

Momentum committee member, Matthew Agius, added: “The new Leader of the Nationalist Party should not play with words. Unfortunately, we saw how Alex Borg was first in favour of towers in specific parts of Gozo, and just a few days later, changed his tune after realising that people had had enough of uncontrolled development.”

Agius observed that soon, the Planning Authority will make a decision on a 13-storey building in Xlendi, developed by Joseph Portelli and friends. “Is Alex Borg going to lead the protests against this proposed high-rise building in his island of birth,” he questioned.

“Unfortunately, we continue to see how the Nationalist Party and the Labour Party are very close to developers, as was evident with the last leadership campaign activity held by Alex Borg at Monte Kristo, a venue known for wide breaches and illegalities that were nonetheless legalised,” Agius said.

“Alex Borg must act decisively and firmly. He needs to show through actions, and not just words, that he is not in the hands of the developers,” he added.

The General Secretary of Momentum, Mark Camilleri Gambin, said: “This scandal is just the latest symptom of a rotten system. But anger is not enough. We have concrete proposals on how to fix the situation as it stands.”

He said that the party is proposing a Public Integrity Act that obliges the National Audit Office to verify the assets of every politician, with criminal prosecution for those who make false declarations.

He continued that the party is also proposing to open the government’s books with a Public Spending Register Bill, which would create an updated and accessible database providing visibility on every euro spent by the government. Commercial confidentiality should no longer remain an excuse to hide agreements made behind closed doors, he said.

Momentum, he said, would also make it clear that we must protect the little public land we still have left. “We are proposing a constitutional amendment that prohibits the sale of public land for commercial use. No more giveaways. Every lease should be short-term, require a three-quarters parliamentary majority, and be strictly tied to the absolute preservation of the original character of the land,” he said.

“This is our plan: real checks, open books, and a constitutional shield for our land. We want to replace a system of political convenience with one of constitutional protection and absolute transparency,” he added.

Camilleri Gambin concluded that the time has come to stop the selling off of our country.