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3 News maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 4 DECEMBER 2013 Dalli refused transitional allowance from Brussels Former European Commissioner says he got authorisation from EC secretary-general Catherine Day to carry out report on Mater Dei for Maltese government JEROME CARUANA CILIA FORMER European Commissioner John Dalli has insisted he was still a member of the EU's executive, even though he was asked to step down back in October 2012. Dalli said on PBS's Reporter that he was still contesting his forced resignation in the European Court of Justice and that he considered his sacking by Commission president José Manuel Barroso to be null. Dalli was asked to resign on the strength of a covering letter from EU anti-fraud agency OLAF claiming he was aware of an attempt at bribing snus tobacco manufacturers Swedish Match, in a bid to lift an EU retail ban on snus. The allegations proved to be circumstantial and based on a series of telephone call logs' data, a leaked copy of the OLAF report later showed. On Reporter, Dalli said he had sought permission from the Commission to undertake a review of Mater Dei Hospital, on a voluntary basis, by prime minister Joseph Muscat. He told MaltaToday that it was secretary-general Catherine Day who authorised him to undertake this government work. "A commissioner who takes up a job with anyone within 18 months of his tenure coming to an end must seek permission from the Commission. And I asked for that permission," Dalli said. But Dalli says he still considers himself to be a commissioner. "I insist that my resignation is null and that I am still a commissioner." He also said that he has refused the Commission's transitional allowance that is paid to former commissioners for three years after their exit from the EC, worth between 40% to 65% of their final salary. "The Commission twice deposited the transitional allowance in my bank account, but I refused it and instructed my legal counsel to take action on this matter. Since then, the EC have stopped paying me the transitional allowance." On Monday, Dalli appeared on Reporter together with the Medical Association of Malta's secretary-general Martin Balzan, who has been critical of Dalli's review of Mater Dei Hospital. Health Minister Godfrey Farrugia said that Dalli's report is being scrutinised by two committees and if need be, their conclusions will be passed on to the Commissioner of Police, John Dalli the Attorney General and the Auditor General to see whether there is any criminal liability in accounts of pilferage and possible maladministration. Dalli's report also pointed out that the adjudication process for a €25 million IT system at Mater Dei Hospital had been stopped in favour of the internal development of a new IT system. Dalli claimed that the patient administration system (PAS) was being discontinued because it was an old system, and that there was little time to seek out a different system. The only alternative for the health ministry was to roll over the contract with the same supplier, at a cost of around €2.5 million for a new licence, an upgrade, and a "temporary" maintenance agreement of five years. A body found on the rocks at the foot of the cliffs in l-Ahrax tal-Mellieha, belongs to 45-year-old James Patrick Aitken. The police were informed of the discovery at 4:50pm yesterday, however the police could not provide further details on the dead body. Police have not ruled out that the man, believed to be an American national, slipped from the cliffs. While there are indications he may have been a private investigator, the Police have not yet confirmed the information. Reports that Aitken may have been working for "an embassy", have been described as "rumours" by sources. The man, married to a Maltese woman, was not reported missing to the Police and it is believed that he may have died yesterday. According to media reports, the corpse was discovered by a foreigner who was taking pictures in the area. A AFTER ministers and parliamentary secretaries hoarded most of the Labour Party's experienced journalists at One TV, the newsroom has once again suffered another reduction in numbers with three of its journalists migrating to the Public Broadcasting Services. Senior journalists Brandon Pisani, Rodney Vassallo and Dorothy Falzon are among the latest journalists to leave the Labour Party's television station. The trio will be forming part of the state TV's newsroom, having answered a public call earlier in October. It appears that journalists from Media.Link – the Nationalist Party's media company – also applied for the posts but did not make it. One newsroom has already suffered an 'exodus' of journalists right after the March 2103 elections when most of its journalists – Charlon Gouder, Reuben Sciberras, Jonathan Attard, Ramona Attard, Anthony David Gatt, Lindsey Gambin, Wendy Borg, Melissa Vella and Glenn Bedingfield – joined various ministers as their communications coordinators. jccilia@mediatoday.com.mt Corpse discovered in Mellieha is American PI's MIRIAM DALLI New PBS reporters hollow out Labour newsroom grey car, with the keys still in the ignition, was found in the area. The operation to recover the corpse required the assistance of members of the Civil Protection Department and the Armed Forces of Malta who assisted the Police. An ambulance was on site. In October, 47-year-old Paul Grech was discovered dead in the same area after being stabbed in the heart. mdalli@mediatoday.com.mt Former news manager Matthew Carbone was employed at the Office of the Prime Minister as deputy head of government communications. Having already been the Labour Party's official spokesperson, Kurt Farrugia was immediately appointed as the government's head of communications. His assistant at the Labour headquarters, Randolph Debattista, joined the private secretariat of deputy prime minister Louis Grech. Other junior journalists, part-timers and news anchors were employed within the various ministries and entities in different roles.

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