Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/815607
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 26 APRIL 2017 4 News CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 The op- position leader said that following his public appeal for anyone with information to come forward, he had been approached by a number of people. Willerby Trading Inc. was regis- tered in the British Virgin Islands and was revealed to be owned by Tonna in the Panama Papers leaks in 2016. 'Bank flagged payments' Busuttil claimed that Pilatus Bank had asked Tonna and Schem- bri to explain and justify the money transfers – a common occurrence when politically exposed persons are involved in money transfers. He said that the two had tried to justify it as being merely a case of Tonna repaying Schembri for a loan he had advanced him while he was going through a separation. "As if anyone will believe that Tonna needs to borrow any mon- ey," Busuttil scoffed. He went to insist that the facts were now pointing to the clear execution of a series of crimes, in- cluding money laundering, which in itself carried a possible 18-year prison sentence. "I don't even have the words to describe how disgusted I am, knowing that the chief of staff in the office of the prime minister has been accepted bribes from the sale of our passport," Busuttil said. "And yet, prime minister Jo- seph Muscat continues to de- fend him." Busuttil was adamnant in his call for the prime min- ister to resign immediately. He said he also expected Schembri to be arrested im- mediately, interrogated as to his involvement in corruption and money laundering schemes and arraigned. "I expect the prime minister himself to be interrogated so as to determine whether he was guilty of turning a blind eye to what his chief of staff was doing or if he too had benefited from this corrup- tion," he said. Busuttil claimed the situation in the country was now very danger- ous, with known criminal elements leading the country from Castille. Asked by MaltaToday if he would be making public the evidence he had in hand, Busuttil said he felt his first duty was to present the evi- dence to the inquiring magistrate, avoiding any public play-acting. "I think this a serious way to pro- ceed and I have no doubt the mag- istrate will know how to use the evidence I will be pre- senting him." With regards to Caruana Galizia, Busuttil said this was not the first time that she had revealed serious events that had then gone on to be substantiated. "It is up to her as a journalist to de- cide how she should act on any information she might have in hand," he said. Reacting to the opposition's claims, Schembri denied ever hav- ing received any kickbacks and described it as a "frame-up." He also claimed that the transections being cited by Busuttil were the re- payment of a loan he gave Tonna in 2012, well before he was appointed the Prime Minister's chief of Staff. "I outright deny and refute com- pletely that I have ever received any kickbacks from Brian Tonna or anyone for that matter," he said on his Facebook page. "Simon Busuttil has chosen once again to resort to blatant lies and attempt a frame-up, in his lust for power, repeating allegations made by Daphne Caruana Galizia on the 24th of May, 2016." Schembri welcomed the fact that Busuttil will be presenting the evi- dence he has to the inquiring mag- istrate. "Just as I will gladly face any questions put to me on the matter, so too will Simon Busuttil have to face legal consequences if the Mag- istrate determines that his accusa- tions have been false." "As I have already been avail- able over the last days I will readily make myself available again to an- swer any questions that the Magis- trate may feel the need to ask me," he added. He also claimed that the pay- ments in question happened in 2012 and have nothing to do with the cash-for-passports scheme. "Just for the record, Brian Tonna did settle a transaction of a loan for which the necessary evidence ex- ists, which loan was made in 2012, and hence well before Labour en- tered government and before the IIP scheme was conceived." He also claimed that "similar and larger facilities were given by my- self and my companies to Allied Newspapers and the Nationalist Party's Media.link commercial arm. One might expect Simon Bu- suttil now to assume I have been paid kickbacks by them too." Schembri said he will proceed with libel proceedings against Bu- suttil , adding "it is however a com- plete shame that this is the only tool I have to protect my name, however I shall be making full use of it to en- sure that my name is cleared." The same statement was later is- sued by the Prime Minister's Of- fice. Schembri: 'It's a frame-up' Simon Busuttil said he is in possession of evidence showing that Keith Schembri (inset) received €100,000 from NexiaBT chief Brian Tonna MEP says Egrant allegations should be taken to MATTHEW VELLA GERMAN MEP Sven Giegold has called on Malta Independ- ent columnist Daphne Caruana Galizia to hand all relevant doc- umentation pertaining to her allegations on Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, to the Panama Papers committee of inquiry in the European Parliament. The Green MEP, a member of the PANA committee and finance spokesperson for the Green Group, said both Caruana Galizia and Muscat should hand all relevant documents to the PANA committee. "The accusations regarding the Prime Minister's wife have to be properly investigated. Given the poor track record of financial supervisors and anti- money laundering regulators in Malta, we understand that Mrs Caruana Galizia does not trust the Maltese institutions. There- fore, we suggest to Mrs Caruana Galizia as well as Prime Minis- ter Muscat to hand all relevant documents to the PANA inquiry committee of the European Par- liament," Giegold said. The MEP said that Malta had to put its house in order, and said the allegations regarding the Prime Minister's wife turn out to be true, this would be another serious blow in Malta's fight against corruption and money laundering after the in- volvement of Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri in the Panama Papers. "To regain credibility, the pres- idency-in-office of the Coun- cil must support the creation of public register on beneficial owners of companies and trusts in the current negotiations of the Anti-Money Laundering Di- rective," Giegold said. In statements this week, the Malta Union of Bank Employees appealed to all financial insti- tutions to ensure they conduct their business with integrity, consistency and efficiency. "Anything short of that could jeopardize our nation's credibil- ity and pose a potential risk to the country's future wellbeing. MUBE also insists that 'partisan politics' should not take centre- stage, in order to allow a free democratic process to rule dur- ing these difficult times. "Let's be clear, we all have an obligation to ensure that the course of justice is not 'thwart- ed' and that should only be about establishing the facts, verif ying them and following up with de- cisive actions by acting accord- ingly for the benefit of our coun- try's reputation," MUBE said. The Institute for Financial Services Practitioners also said it was very concerned "that the ethical fibre of the entire finan- cial services industry in Malta" was being called into question 'facetiously'. "It is essential that the re- sponsible institutions and law enforcement agencies should effectively, and in a timely man- ner, take all necessary steps to ensure that the law is enforced, or our country's reputation will be irremediably tarnished… "It is this very instability, also caused by the manner in which recent allegations have been handled by our institutions and law enforcement agencies, that is threatening our financial ser- vices industry, which has over the years become one of the pil- lars of the Maltese economy." The IFSP said politicians should be aware of the long-term effects on an industry that was prone to being lost to competi- tion. "The IFSP is concerned that there now appears to be a breakdown of the rule of law, and we should not underestimate the impact which this has on foreign investors who are investing their money and time in our coun- try, thereby helping to generate employment and to finance the country by paying taxes."