MaltaToday previous editions

maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 14 NOVEMBER 2018 6 1. There would have been no inquiry at all if the Op- position had not asked for it The only inquiry on the Pan- ama papers related to the 17 Black allegations is not the re- sult of an investigation carried out by the police force but is the result of a report filed by former Opposition leader Si- mon Busuttil after the 2017 general election. What the latest revelations by the Daphne Project con- firm is that the police's Eco- nomic Crimes Unit received a report from the FIAU in- dicating Yorgen Fenech as the owner of 17 Black seven months ago. In itself this suggests that even after the general elec- tion the FIAU left no stones unturned to investigate a case involving close allies of Mus- cat after his re-election. But as was the case before 2017 the FIAU's sterling work has not prompted police action. The police may still be in- vestigating these reports but it may well be the case that it lacks the will to take this in- vestigation to the next level. In some ways Muscat is us- ing an inquiry called for by the former leader of the Opposi- tion to hide the institutional paralysis after panamagate. Since before the general elec- tion Prime Minister Joseph Muscat had declared that his chief of staff will only resign if the magistrates appointed to hold an inquiry into docu- ments presented by Opposi- tion leader Simon Busuttil find that there is enough evidence for a criminal investigation. Schembri is facing two sepa- rate money-laundering in- quiries unrelated to 17 Black, which pre-date the election. In July 2017 Magistrate Ian Farrugia decided there are enough grounds for a mag- isterial inquiry to determine whether money laundering allegations against tourism minister Konrad Mizzi and the Prime Minister's chief of staff Keith Schembri warrant a criminal investigation. In May 2018 Magistrate Franco Depasquale concluded that it made no sense to open a separate investigation on the $1.6 million transfer allegation to the "target clients" in Pan- ama belonging to Mizzi and Schembri but ordered that this information should be investi- gated in the inquiry presided by Magistrate Ian Farrugia. 2. The PM himself is stalling the investigation on which he is relying to determine Schembri and Mizzi's politi- cal future Magistrate Ian Farrugia's decision to launch an inquiry into whether chief of staff Keith Schembri and minister Konrad Mizzi breached mon- ey-laundering laws can only start after the conclusion of seven appeals, one of which was presented by the Prime Minister. Other appeals were presented by Konrad Mizzi, Keith Schembri, Brian Tonna, Karl Cini, Malcolm Scerri and Adrian Hillman. This means that if the PM wins his appeal, even on pro- cedural or technical grounds, Mizzi and Schembri won't ev- er be investigated for money laundering. A decision on the appeal was further delayed by Simon Busut- til's objection to the case being heard by Antonio Mizzi who is married to a Labour MEP. This led to new court pro- ceedings, which further de- layed the case. Mizzi has re- cently adjourned the hearing on this case to after his retire- ment date. All this raises the question; why is the PM obstructing a formal inquiry on Mizzi and Schembri to await the out- come of an investigation, which he is objecting to? 3. Compared to egrant allegations, 17 Black rev- elations are a completely different kettle of fish The fundamental difference between egrant and 17 Black is that while in the former case it was the PM who called for an inquiry on himself in a bid to clear his name, in the latter case the PM is actively seeking NEWS ANALYSIS Iden ty Malta Agency, e-ID Cards Unit, would like to inform the public that our offices at the Electoral Office St Francis Square, Victoria Gozo will be closed on the following days: Saturday 17 th November 2018 Saturday 1 st December 2018 The Agency apologizes for any inconvenience. IMPORTANT NOTICE 17 Black Five holes in Muscat's Joseph Muscat says that he will wait for ongoing inquiries into the offshore holdings of his chief of staff Keith Schembri and minister Konrad Mizzi before deciding whether they should resign following the latest 17 Black revelations. James Debono pokes five holes in Muscat's justification for delaying action on 17 Black It is hard to believe that the PM did not ask his own chief of staff to reveal to him the identity of the owner of a company described as "a target client" of his Panama company in April

• Cover