Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1133773
2 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 23 JUNE 2019 NEWS MATTHEW VELLA QALA'S verdant fields are an impres- sive tapestry of countryside, layered beneath rubble walls and dotted by prickly pear trees. But the coastline is interrupted by a large quarry which, in 2013, was identi- fied as a possible site for a cruise liner terminal. The movers and shakers behind that project were never made public. The plans were inadvertently publicised by Milan designers Chapman Taylor in 2015, after winning a competition for the design concept. The sole bid for an expression of interest issued by the new Labour government in 2013, had come from Kalamarine consortium. Since then, the project has never been men- tioned again. Yet the construction company that runs the quarry is in court, called upon by lawyers Carmelo Galea – a legal ad- visor to the Gozo bishop – and Patrick Valentino, to pay the owners of the land their rightful dues for having ex- tended their quarrying beyond agreed limits; and, an email from 2018 reveals, to "discuss the concession of the terri- tory of the [Giuspatronat] for reasons that go beyond rock-cutting." Indeed, since 1675, these rural fields were part of the Giuspatronato of Sant Antonio delli Navarra – a sort of foun- dation for the lands owned by Cosmana Cumbo Navarra. Since the 17th century, the founda- tion had to be administered by the male heirs of the Stagno Navarra family and importantly, by a 'rector' or cleric ap- pointed by the Maltese Archbishop. Things came to a head in 1989 with the death of the cleric Francesco Save- rio Bianco, the rector who adminis- tered the lands. With his death, Rich- ard Stagno Navarra of St Julian's came forward – claiming to be the rightful owner as laid down in the Cumbo Na- varra lineage – demanding that the Archbishop appoint him as the 'rector' of the foundation. But Archbishop Mercieca denied the request, insisting that the role had to be fulfilled by a cleric, according to the foundation's own strict rules. Undeterred, Stagno Navarra ig- nored the Archbishop's decree, and in 1992 signed off a tract of land of 126,000sq.m, known as 'tal-Vardati' to the company Berracimp Properties and its shareholder Jimp Ltd, on a 150-year emphyteusis for just Lm500 a year. Crucially, Berracimp had three own- ers: the late Gozo businessman Joseph Vella, lawyer Carmelo Galea, legal advisor to the Gozo bishop, and then magistrate Dennis Montebello (now retired judge). Stagno Navarra's next step was to file a court case asking to be recognised as the holder of the Giuspatronato, which he did by filing the case in the Gozo courts – despite not living in Gozo. His lawyer was Carmelo Galea himself. Indeed, those doors were flung wide open: within the space of just 24 hours, magistrate Carol Peralta obliged by recognising Stagno Navarra as the rec- tor of the Giuspatronato. The decision sparked controversy not least for its hastiness, and for having denied the archdiocese the right to be heard. Whether Peralta knew his de- cision was benefiting a colleague on the bench, apart from the alleged con- flict of interest the Gozo bishop's le- gal counsel might have had, is a moot point. The archdiocese – under both bish- ops Mercieca and Paul Cremona – Gozo land worth millions 'released' for €200,000 A pot of gold at the end of the Qala countryside? Curia insiders question the release of land worth millions for just €200,000 The lands belonging to the Giuspatronat of Sant Antonio delli Navarra, a 'foundation' for the lands bequeathed by the noble Cosmana Cumbo Navarra for the male descendants of her family line (right) Top: Chapman Taylor's aerial rendition of their cruise liner port for the 'mysterious' Kalamarine consortium, right in the quarry currently under emphyteutic concession to Gatt Development Explained The right of patronage in Roman Catholic canon law (jus patronatus or ius patronatus) is a set of rights and obligations of someone, known as the patron in connection with a gift of land (benefice) The right of patronage is subject to ecclesiastical legislation and jurisdiction as well as civil laws relating to the ownership of property