Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/527016
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 14 JUNE 2015 News 9 LABOUR MP Joseph M. Sammut has sued MaltaToday for libel for having described property owner Marco Gaffarena as a business as- sociate of the MP. Sammut sued journalists Mat- thew Vella and Tim Diacono, as well as managing editor Saviour Balzan over a report in which the MP was dubbed "a business associ- ate" of Marco Gaffarena. The report was authored by Mat- thew Vella, not by Tim Diacono. MaltaToday understands that the most recent records at the Malta Financial Services Authority show that the company International Tobacco (Malta) Limited, in which Sammut and Gaffarena were its di- rectors, is in dissolution. Sammut did not avail himself of his right to reply under the Press Act to secure an immediate cor- rection to the report. Sammut is also Labour's appoint- ed member on the MEPA board. When first questioned on his as- sociation with Gaffarena back in April 2014, Sammut said the inter- national trading company was in liquidation. He had refused to ex- plain the company's functions, and his association with Gafferena, one of his political supporters in the last general elections, as evidenced by a photo showing the business- man at a 2013 campaign event. Until recently, International To- bacco (Malta) Ltd had three share- holders: Gaffarena, the Labour MP's wife Sonia-Catherine Sam- mut and UK-based International Tobacco PLC, all having a 33.3% share. The British company, val- ued at some £5 million, is involved in the manufacture and wholesale of tobacco products, and its direc- tors include Sergio Calleja, Michael Calleja and Adelaide Ellul. expropriation was a political decision Labour MP files libel suit over Gaffarena association Sammut did not avail himself of the right of reply under the Press Act Operational Programme I – Cohesion Policy 2014-2020 Fostering a competitive and sustainable economy to meet our challenges PRE-ANNOUNCEMENT - CALL II European Regional Development Fund The Managing Authority for Cohesion Policy 2014-2020 in Malta, the Planning and Priorities Co- ordination Department (PPCD) within the Ministry or European Affairs and Implementation of the Electoral Manifesto (MEAIM), would like to announce that it will shortly be launching a call for project proposals to be undertaken by Ministries, Government Departments, Central Government Authorities and the Public Sector Companies under the following Priority Axes and Investment Priorities: Priority Axis 2 – 'Consolidating investment within the ICT sector' ! Investment Priority (IP) 2c - Strengthening ICT applications for e-government, e-learning, e-inclusion, e-culture and e-health. Priority Axis 8 – 'Investing towards a more socially-inclusive society' ! Investment Priority (IP) 9a - Investing in health and social infrastructure which contributes to national, regional and local development, reducing inequalities in terms of health status, promoting social inclusion through improved access to social, cultural and recreational services and the transition from institutional to community-based services. Priority Axis 9 – 'Developing our future through education, training and lifelong learning' ! Investment Priority (IP) 10a - Investing in education, training and vocational training for skills and lifelong learning by developing education and training infrastructure. The actual launch of the call, together with details of the related Information Session, will be published in the coming weeks and will be available on our webpage: www.eufunds.gov.mt. The related Application Form and relevant documentation (including the list of eligible actions) will be made available through the same link once the call is launched. In the meantime, background documents and further information may be obtained from www.eufunds.gov.mt or from PPCD's Online Helpdesk: info.ppcd@gov.mt. This notice should be considered as a pre-announcement to allow interested applicants additional time to prepare projects. Operational Programme II - Cohesion Policy 2007-2013 Empowering People for More Jobs and a Better Quality of Life Advert part financed by the European Union European Social Fund (ESF), Co-financing rate: 85% EU Funds; 15% National Funds Investing in your Future month later, Gaffarena bought an- other quarter of the property for €139,762, which the government subsequently expropriated for an- other €822,500 in April. The money was paid in cash and parcels of land that were of strate- gic and commercial importance to Gaffarena – land parcels at White Rocks, Ta' Kandja, Handaq, Zeb- bug, and a property in Triq Man- wel Dimech, Sliema. Shadow justice minister Jason Azzopardi said that the decision to expropriate a fraction of a prop- erty was uncommon and that it was "grossly over-valued" as it was evaluated as a building site, rather than as a historical site. "Who asked the architect to evaluate the building as a build- ing site?" Azzopardi asked, while pointing out that Falzon had ear- lier described the building as one with historical value. He also questioned why the gov- ernment only decided to expropri- ate two quarters of the property, why they didn't expropriate both quarters at the same time, and who chose the lands that the gov- ernment granted to Gaffarena as part of the agreement. He added that independent ar- chitects had valued those lands at a much higher price than the gov- ernment-appointed architects. "Expropriation is a political de- cision, not an administrative one, and political responsibility must therefore be shouldered," Azzop- ardi said, adding that Prime Min- ister Joseph Muscat is the minister responsible for lands. "Governments expropriate pri- vate property when they want to use it for a public purpose and the government could easily have housed the BICC elsewhere. They had no reason to expropriate the building which houses the BICC when those offices could easily have been relocated elsewhere." Opposition MP Ryan Callus again questioned why Muscat has refused to allow the Auditor General to investigate the case itself and instead requested the Internal Audit and Investigations Department to conduct a separate inquiry. tdiacono@mediatoday.com.mt Labour MP Joseph M. Sammut Qormi site at tal-Handaq, Cavett place Haz-Zebbug fields at Hal Mula Date of valuation 31 August 2014 Total area 26,270 square metres Valued €375,000 Property characteristics Agricultural land ODZ subject to enforcement notice 184/2003 therefore depreciating the value Valuation methodology Comparative freehold prices for agricultural land taking into consideration depreciate factors average at €14 per square metre: 26,270 sq.m at €14 = €367,780, say €375,000 Date of valuation 31 August 2014 Total area 9,870 square metres Valued €192,810 Property characteristics Agricultural land outside development zone, with building occupying 182 square metres, with structures under enforcement 407/12, not assumed under title of emphyteusis or title of lease. Valuation methodology 1. Comparative freehold prices for agricultural land average at 19 per square metre: 9,870 sq.m at €19 = €187,530 2. Contractor method for footprint area of 182 square metres at construction costs of €400 per square metre. Construction costs at €300 per square metre = €54,600 This value is reduced by 90% to take into account that the buildings are subject to an enforcement notice and land lies in an ODZ area. Value attributed to buildings = €5,460 Freehold value - €187,530 + €5,460 = €192,810 Based on methodologies 1 and 2 the estimated freehold value is €192,810