Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/446030
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 14 JANUARY 2015 5 MIRIAM DALLI THE parliamentary committee in- vestigating the Auditor General's fuel procurement audit will be grill- ing former prime minister Lawrence Gonzi this evening. Although the Auditor General's re- port covers the period between 2008 and 2011, the Public Accounts Com- mittee is expected to raise questions in connection with the oil scandal revealed by MaltaToday in 2013. The newspaper's investigation was to lead to the revelation that pardoned oil trader George Farrugia started pay- ing illegal commissions in 1999. He claims that the kickbacks stopped in 2005. Farrugia learned that he could be pardoned for the bribery of Enemalta officials on fuel contracts a day after Gonzi – then prime minister – first pronounced himself on a presidential pardon being granted for whoever could give police information on the Enemalta oil scandal. In fact, the police investigating team would later tell the PAC that they were interrogating Farrugia when news of the presidential pardon emerged. "I learned about the presidential par- don through the internet and no one before then had ever told me anything about it. Farrugia was then released on police bail. The following morn- ing I received a text from his lawyer [Franco Debono] asking whether we had told Farrugia about the pardon," Inspector Angelo Gafa told the PAC. "We had only informed him of what was in the media. Debono said Far- rugia was ready to consider it and I informed him that it was not in my parameters to discuss the pardon." Farrugia may have availed himself of the right to remain silent during a 48-hour arrest in order to be eligible for a presidential pardon. During the media's following of the scandal, several questions were raised, including purported contra- dictory statements by Gonzi. For example, it was only in October 2013 that Gonzi denied that a mem- ber of his security detail gave him in 2011 documents with allegations of irregularities in the procurement of oil supplies for Enemalta. He was then reacting to a sworn testimony by MaltaToday managing editor Saviour Balzan. MaltaToday had already asked Gon- zi the same question during the 2013 election, on 26 February, specifically about a member of the Malta Security Services who had informed him in the summer of 2011 of the invoices and documents pertaining to Farrugia's activities, himself accused by his fam- ily of siphoning off some €6 million in commissions on oil imports from family business Powerplan. MaltaToday had specifically asked Gonzi about the MSS member who informed him of Farrugia's activities, and of accusations that he had si- phoned off his family business's prof- its to a hidden company, Aikon Ltd, with related invoices. Gonzi report- edly told the officer to report the alle- gation to the Commissioner of Police, without taking any further ownership of the matter. This contradiction is further strengthened by an interview Gonzi gave to MaltaToday just a week before the 2013 general elections. He stressed that he was never di- rectly approached by anyone who had any information on Frank Sammut, the former Enemalta consultant im- plicated in kickbacks stemming from oil purchasing agreements related to Enemalta. "I am now aware that persons received information who took it straight to the competent authorities, as expected, but I never had any direct or indirect information specifically on Frank Sammut or anything else. If I had such information I would have taken immediate action, as I did." During the interview, Gonzi also in- sisted that his controversial decision to grant pardon to the oil trader had been accepted by all as a powerful tool, which is allowing the Police Commis- sioner and the Attorney General to carry out their investigations. "I also granted him [John Rizzo] the best tool possible. Pardons are not issued on a weekly basis, it's a rare thing, but I have not shied away from issuing it as long as it produces results. The government has nothing to be ashamed of and we are commit- ted to fighting corruption, wherever it comes from, whoever it is. I have stated that whoever plays with fire with me will burn himself and some did get burnt." Almost a year later, Gonzi would then say that he had been acting on a recommendation by Rizzo, then Police Commissioner. But during a sitting of the Public Accounts Committee, Riz- zo said that the presidential pardon was first mooted by Gonzi. He would then inform Edgar Galea Curmi, then Gonzi's head of secretariat, that Farrugia was interested in the presidential pardon after the govern- ment had given notice it was consid- ering granting it. Rizzo also confirmed that the presi- dential pardon was drafted by the po- lice and office of the Attorney General while the Office of the Prime Minis- ter approved it. The OPM, Rizzo said, had carried out several amendments "to make the presidential pardon more harsh". But while the police needed the presidential pardon to uncover any corruption between 2005 and 2011, no evidence of corruption emerged. Michael Cassar said the investiga- tive team was after what happened from 2005 onwards: "We made it clear that we didn't need informa- tion pre-2005 because we could eas- ily secure a conviction. Farrugia said that kickbacks stopped after Tancred Tabone left Enemalta." The PAC revealed that the inves- tigative team never questioned Far- rugia's wife, Cathy Farrugia. Now, MaltaToday reveals that the police called her in for questioning just a few weeks ago. Just before she was called in, Mal- taToday revealed that for eight years, Cathy Farrugia was responsible for drawing up and issuing 'illicit' in- voices for her husband's secret com- pany Aikon Ltd. At the time of the granting of the presidential pardon, it was not known that Cathy Farrugia had been the prime minister's secretary for 10 years when Gonzi was a legal advisor at the Mizzi organisation. Moreover, when pictures surfaced of himself with the Farrugias, Gonzi had told MaltaToday: "No I never knew them. I rarely... rarely did I meet or have any contact with the Farrugia family, which is a well-known family in Hamrun and in business circles. The only times we met were at pub- lic events, as evidenced by pictures published showing the open day at the Aviation Park where I met thou- sands of people including George Farrugia and a relative of his. It's just a picture, which does not mean that I knew with whom George Farrugia was that day." Asked specifically, whether he knew Farrugia's wife, Gonzi said: "I don't know who she is, I would not recog- nise her were I to meet her. It could be, maybe yes, maybe not, but I never had anything to do with her." News Parliamentary committee set to grill former prime minister this evening Gonzi on Farrugia's pardon: "I also granted him [John Rizzo] the best tool possible. Pardons are not issued on a weekly basis, it's a rare thing, but I have not shied away from issuing it as long as it produces results" Gozo Cabinet meeting tots up €7,000 bill Expenses for Prime Minister and ministers to meet in Gozo included air-conditioning services, rental of monitors and the transport of table used during meeting MIRIAM DALLI A Cabinet meeting held in Gozo last year cost taxpayers the sum of €6,827.95, information tabled in parliament by Prime Minister Joseph Muscat showed. The PM was replying to a ques- tion raised by Gozitan MP Chris Said. In a breakdown of the expenses revealed by Muscat, it transpired that the government spent €991.20 to transport, put together and dis- mantle the table used by the Cabi- net members. €992,85 were spent on putting together the necessary equipment while the rental of monitors cost €1,893.90. The government also paid €2,950 for the use of air-conditioning services. The July meeting was held in Victoria, Gozo, as part of a government initiative to hold Cabinet meetings in various locali- ties around Malta and Gozo. Also present for the meeting were mem- bers from the Gozo Regional Com- mittee – which forms part of the MCESD – and stakeholders that included Gozitan mayors. Muscat reassured parliament that the services provided respected the government's financial regulations. Prime Minister Joseph Muscat (centre) assured parliament that services provided respected financial regulations CONTINUES FROM PAGE 1 The in- voices, under the name of Aikon Ltd, were issued from an office computer during her time as an employee of the Farrugia brothers' company, Power Plan Ltd. The in- voices were issued in relation to il- licit commissions for the sale of oil and fuels by Trafigura and other oil companies to Malta's state en- ergy corporation, Enemalta. The invoices cover the period 2003 until 2010. In spite of her central role in the oil sale scandal in February 2013, Cathy Farrugia was never interrogated by the police. Her first interrogation took place just weeks ago. At the various hearings in the Public Accounts Committee it became evident that the police had completely forgotten or con- veniently overlooked interrogat- ing Cathy Farrugia. Her role is all the more signifi- cant when one recalls that she served on Lawrence Gonzi 's sec- retarial staff for just around 10 years when he was legal advisor at Mizzi House. Gonzi had even denied that he knew Cathy Farrugia, when quizzed by MaltaToday journal- ists in February 2013. Later Mal- taToday discovered a photograph of Gonzi talking to the Farrugia family at an open day at Gudja airport, oddly published in the Nationalist daily newspaper IN- NAZZJON. Gonzi had surprised his Cabi- net when he announced that he would be advising a presidential pardon to George Farrugia on condition that Farrugia would reveal everything in connection with the oil scandal. Yet, in his police statements, Farrugia's admission to paying kickbacks stops with the time when Tancred Tabone was chair- man at Enemalta. He did not ad- mit to having given kickbacks in the time of Alex Tranter, then chairman of Enemalta, even though his wife Cathy continued to issue invoices as Aikon Ltd behind the Farrugia brothers' back. The news that Cathy Farrugia had been interrogated by Paul Vassallo comes on the same day the Public Accounts Committee will see former Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi testif y. Cabinet surprised