Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1496720
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 9 APRIL 2023 OPINION 5 Saviour Balzan FORMER Nationalist MP Jason Azzopardi is a divisive political figure and there are many things that I could criticise him for. But no matter how distasteful he can make himself out to be, the decision to attack him for his legal work in representing clients against a rogue company led by a dangerous and uncouth character should not be tolerat- ed. He is a lawyer and as a lawyer he has every right to represent individuals. I am being very Vol- tairean here - I may disagree with what he has said, or done, but I will defend his right to say it or do it. Several have felt cheated and wronged by the car dealership known as 'No Deposit Cars Mal- ta', whose ultimate beneficial owner is Christian Borg. This young man, who seems to have made a fortune over- night and flaunts it like a clown, reached stardom when he liter- ally kidnapped a man he accused of stealing a van of his. As the proverbial shit hit the fan, it transpired that Christian Borg had a number of contracts with a number of government entities, some of which were re- visited or terminated after the media raised a storm about this. Only last week, the Appeals Court upheld a decision by the Public Contracts Review Board to disqualify Christian Borg's Princess Operations Limited from a multi-million-euro car leasing tender for the judiciary. The Court Services Agency had issued a call for tender in May 2022 'for the Lease of 48 Plug-in Hybrid Vehicles for the Mem- bers of the Judiciary'. Three companies had submit- ted a bid, with Princess Opera- tions coming in as the cheapest bidder at €2.6 million. Were it not for the media, the 29-year-old Christian Borg would have sailed on making money off everyone, unper- turbed by the accusations. Before a banner was erected on the show room of No Deposit Cars Malta Borg portraying Ja- son Azzopardi as a priest, Borg had already singled out two Mal- taToday journalists Luke Vella and Karl Azzopardi in a seem- ingly harmless commentary. They had followed the saga of clients who had been cheated by the company. And the very fact that Christian Borg has ne- farious links to very uncolourful characters brings into question whether we should take this kind of 'pressure' lightly. Christian Borg thinks he is powerful enough to do as he pleases and say what he wants. In his eyes, the bad guys are the journalists who report on him and the lawyer who acts on be- half of his clients. When at MaltaToday we report people for having broken the law we are seen as the assholes and the others as the victims. God forbid something happens to any of the journalists or law- yers involved in this case. The responsibility to ensure nothing happens lies with the government and the police who have to show zero tolerance to Christian Borg and his compa- nies. The fact that Borg used Robert Abela at one point for his legal services and even pur- chased a share of a property from the Abelas makes it una- voidable for Abela now as Prime Minister to publicly disown him. We need to ensure that crooks that come by the name of Chris- tian Borg are not allowed or giv- en the space to put more pres- sure on journalists such as Luke Vella and Karl Azzopardi and yes, even lawyer Jason Azzopar- di. • • • When Michael Stivala as MDA president argued that environ- mental NGOs were paid to by rival competitors, all hell broke loose. On Saturday the Volun- tary Organisations Commission- er said he received 'evidence' by Stivala and it followed that he would investigate. The so called evidence is some- thing which needs to be verified. Basically there has to be proof that an action against a proposed development was motivated by funding directly coming from a competitor. I doubt whether Stivala has that kind of proof. Yet there is little doubt in my mind, that many developers are motivated to help activists or residents to raise hell with pro- jects that could impact their own projects. The problem lies when an NGO chooses to shut its mouth on one project and not another. That environmental NGOs may receive funding from potential questionable sources is not im- possible. Indeed why should it not happen. The whole issue is open for dis- cussion. As a media we receive adver- tising from sources which this newspaper editorially does not agree with or support. We fre- quently get flak for that, but that is why the proof the pudding is in the eating – our editorial re- mains independent at all times. There is also the issue of revolv- ing doors, with former journal- ists or editors (some who spent years castigating big business or those who served big business) serving big business and running marketing and content cam- paigns in return for handsome payouts. Beyond the implications of ethical standards, conflicts of interest and biased campaign- ing or reporting, there is one very crucial underlying consid- eration - the construction and development frenzy engulfing this islands, whether by 'good or bad developers' is suffocating this land to the extent that we all want to reconsider staying on. At the end of his investigation, VO Commissioner Jesmond Sal- iba may well just remind us that the complex role of lobbyists and pressure groups has nothing whatsoever to do with the shab- biness and appearance of this country under siege from devel- opers. A Happy Easter to all! Why Christian Borg's bullying and threats are no longer OK We need to ensure that crooks that come by the name of Christian Borg are not allowed or given the space to put more pressure on journalists such as Luke Vella and Karl Azzopardi and yes, even lawyer Jason Azzopardi The photo posted to the No Deposit Cars Malta Facebook page