Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1530133
6 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 4 DECEMBER 2024 NEWS MARIANNA CALLEJA mcalleja@mediatoday.com.mt WHILE the Maltese courts rec- ognised that the State Advocate can recoup public funds paid to Vitals and Steward throughout the failed hospitals concession, the PN's main claims were dis- missed, Justice Minister Jon- athan Attard said on Monday night. "The sentence delivered to- day, on appeal, should not be seen as a clear victory for the Nationalist Party," Attard said. "If considered a victory, then it is a Pyrrhic victory because, when you fail to properly ana- lyse the judgment and rush to claim you've won just seconds later, you're not being thor- ough." This marked the beginning of a heated exchange between the Justice Minister and PN Secre- tary General Michael Piccini- no, who was also on the panel. Xtra was recorded only hours after a Maltese court ruled the State Advocate has the power to act against those responsi- ble for the fraudulent hospitals concession, following the Na- tionalist Party's appeal. The Nationalist Party wel- comed the Court of Appeal's decision that the State Advo- cate is responsible for seeking the return of public funds lost in the corrupt hospitals deal. However, Attard criticised the Nationalist Party for hastily declaring victory without fully digesting the 80-page ruling, while Piccinino insisted it was the Minister who had failed to understand Monday's decision. When asked what the ruling concluded, Attard explained that under the Public Dispos- al Act, the State Advocate, any party involved in the contract, or any Member of Parliament can initiate action against those who improperly acquired pub- lic assets. Attard also defended the government's approach, highlighting its efforts to safe- guard national interests. "This judgment is a certificate for Robert Abela's government, demonstrating that we've tak- en all necessary steps from day one, including the arbitration and consultations with both local and international legal experts, to protect national in- terests," he said. He urged the Opposition to study the judgment thorough- ly, emphasising that "the ruling essentially validates the actions of the State Advocate, who act- ed decisively to recover what belongs to the Maltese people". Piccinino, however, argued that the government had failed to act promptly against Vitals and Steward. "Had it been up to you, Vitals and Steward would still be rob- bing us," Piccinino said, stress- ing that the ruling empowers the State Advocate to act inde- pendently, without requiring the Cabinet's approval. "The State Advocate has the authority and the right to re- cover the people's money from anyone who benefited from this corrupt deal... If someone stole from us, it's not enough to just say sorry, they must return our money." In response, Attard accused Opposition Leader Bernard Grech of making a false decla- ration in court when claiming that the Prime Minister was found guilty of collusion in the hospital concession case. "That's false. No court, neither in the first instance nor on ap- peal, has ever made such a de- termination," Attard said. Justice Minister says PN should have analysed court ruling before declaring victory Justice Minister Jonathan Attard (left) and PN secretary general Michael Piccinino WITH the shopping season reaching its peak as Christmas approaches, Bank of Valletta con- tinues to advise customers to be aware of the increasing attempts by scammers to obtain sensitive and personal information illicitly and maliciously. This is part of the Bank's ongoing efforts to increase customer education on the differ- ent scams in circulation. The Bank's Spot the Scam cam- paign which has been running since March last year has attract- ed significant engagement from the Bank's social media followers. The campaign features on BOV's Facebook, Instagram and You- Tube channels, providing engag- ing content such as quizzes, polls and informational and education- al posts to help customers remain alert and identify genuine Bank communications from unsolicited requests and malicious intent. In recent weeks various phishing attempts have been noted, urg- ing customers to act immediately due to alleged suspension of their BOV Card or 3D Secure app. In these instances, the scam takes the form of an email or SMS appear- ing to be sent by the Bank asking customers to click on the link pro- vided. Once the link is accessed through the SMS, scammers ask their victims to unenroll their cards from the 3D Secure app by providing them with step-by-step instructions, and the user is then taken to a spoofed site where they are asked to enter their card num- ber, expiry date and CVV code. Other scams are in the form of telephone calls that appear to be from a Bank number, with the caller often speaking in Maltese and asking for sensitive informa- tion over the phone. As part of this ongoing awareness program, customers who visit any BOV Branch in Malta and Gozo until the end of December are en- couraged to test their knowledge by taking an interactive Financial Scams Quiz that can be accessed on their mobile device from the LED screens that are found in each branch. Three customers who complete the quiz will be randomly drawn each month and are eligible to win €50 each. The Bank has also recently in- troduced a new AI-powered Transaction Monitoring tool that enables the Bank to identify any suspicious activity before any transaction is affected. Whilst this continues to protect customers, with technology playing an im- portant role in helping fraudsters up their game, vigilance and pro- activeness from customers remain the key factor in the fight against financial crime. The Bank reminds the public that it never sends any links to customers via SMS, and neither will it ask for personal or bank de- tails over the phone, by email or SMS. BOV advises customers to stay alert this holiday season