Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/699546
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 3 JULY 2016 10 News Identity Malta accused of 'abusive and illegal' practice CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 "The Electoral Commission is obliged to make its own verifica- tion that all electors are included in the register, even those who acquired naturalisation through the IIP. "This abusive and illegal action by Identity Malta is undermining the Electoral Commission in the execution of its duties according to the Constitution and electoral laws, as well as undermining the PN from carrying out its own verification of electors – as it is freely empowered to do by way of the electoral process," the PN wrote. Of the hundreds of foreign na- tionals who acquired Maltese citizenship under the IIP, the Nationalist Party has so far iden- tified 91 who have been errone- ously included in the electoral register. They are ineligible to vote be- cause since acquiring their citi- zenship, they have not been liv- ing in Malta for the minimum required period. But intermediaries for these new citizens – who are charged with handling their IIP applica- tions with Identity Malta – have also applied for a voting docu- ment for their clients. When they erroneously ticked a box indicating their clients were 'over 16 and resident in Malta', the Electoral Commission failed to verify the claim. The law courts rebuked the Commission for its shortcomings after failing to ensure a thorough validation of these claims. 'Letterbox millionaires' In an examination of the reg- istered addresses of IIP citizens, MaltaToday has discovered that a percentage have been 'housed' inside holiday flats in- stead of purchasing a property of €350,000 or renting a home for at least €16,000 annually for five years. The commitment for the lease or purchase of property is stipu- lated in a legal notice, but the re- quirement to acquire a property as well as invest €150,000 in gov- ernment bonds, must be fulfilled within four months from when the Letter of Approval in Princi- ple is issued by Identity Malta. "Identity Malta requires that a copy of the actual contract for purchase or lease of the property is provided," Identity Malta CEO Jonathan Cardona told MaltaTo- day. "A copy of the purchase note of the Malta Government Stock is also required. These submissions are done through the applicants' agents who are responsible for handling the application and en- suring that it is in order. With- out these documents in hand the individual is not allowed to pro- ceed with the application." Photos of the residences where people like Chinese billionaire Liu Zhongtian is registered, eas- ily prove the theory that humble properties are being used as let- terbox addresses so that Zhong- tian's people in Malta would collect official mail. Zhongtian, worth at least $2.8 billion, be- came the recipient of a voting document without even having lived for six months in Malta in the last 18 months. Jonathan Cardona contested MaltaToday's suggestion that Identity Malta has not been veri- fying IIP applicants' property purchases. "This is an incorrect state- ment. All applicants, through their agents, provide a contract to Identity Malta of the property leased or bought. The application does not proceed unless Identity Malta is provided with a copy of a contract which meets the legal requirements. "Documentation is verified again by the regulator, both Dr Godwin Grima and now Mr Carmel Degabriele, who has full and unhindered access to the documents of every application. Furthermore, Identity Malta has recently introduced a new re- quirement of submitting a dec- laration by an architect stating that the values presented on the contract are fair according to current market conditions." Until 30 April, 2016 the to- tal value of property leased amounted to €12,245,835 whilst total value of property purchased amounted to €25,475,744. Identity Malta would not con- firm the total value of govern- ment bonds acquired by IIP ap- plicants. Only €76 million in national fund Citizenship sales have so far generated €76 million for a spe- cial development fund, The Times reported yesterday – a figure far short of the €1.5 billion that passport scheme operators Henley and Partners have said are already 'committed'. The money is being held by the Treasury and Identity Malta in ring-fenced accounts as the 'national development and so- cial fund' is still in the process of being set up, two years since the introduction of the controversial IIP. The account contains more than €54.9 million. Another €20.8 million are being held by Identity Malta for eventual transfer to the fund. At least 70% of the contribu- tions paid to Identity Malta from the IIP must be paid to the na- tional fund, which is to serve to finance public purposes, and is administered by Chamber of Commerce president David Cur- mi. Henley and Partners has re- ported that 1,112 applications for citizenship were being pro- cessed, "a commitment" of more than €1.5 billion. mvella@mediatoday.com.mt This two-storey Naxxar maisonette on Triq il-Forga is listed as the address of Chinese billionaire Liu Zhongtian, chairman of China Zhongwang Holdings, one of the country's biggest aluminium makers. He is worth $2.8 billion, but is this property worth €350K? 'Identity Malta requires that a copy of the actual contract for purchase or lease of the property is provided' Identity Malta CEO Jonathan Cardona No easy consensus on migration during EU presidency MIRIAM DALLI MALTA is already girdling its loins against a backlash on the inability to gain any satisfactory solutions on the manage- ment of mixed migration flows during its EU presidency. The European Union Agency for Fun- damental Rights (FRA) yesterday said it was willing to offer Malta support during the Presidency of the Council of the EU in the first half of 2017. In a meeting with Home Affairs Minis- ter Carmelo Abela, FRA director Michael O'Flaherty said the agency would provide legal advice and technical data, as well as support through the organisation of spe- cific joint events. One event will centre around the pres- entation of the outcome of a study the FRA is undertaking on the detention of immigrant children. The research cov- ers children in asylum, or in immigration or return procedures, in all EU Member States. It focuses on detention condi- tions, covering such issues as access to health and education, monitoring of de- tention facilities, and ensuring children's wellbeing. O'Flaherty also presented Abela with a document on the outcome of a funda- mental rights forum the FRA convened in Vienna with the participation of over 700 leading experts from around the world. The outcome contains around 100 prac- tical ideas to address the EU's pressing fundamental rights concerns. Roughly 50% of these ideas are related, directly or indirectly, to asylum and refugee issues. Abela said the reform that the govern- ment has carried out in respect of Malta's reception system for irregular migrants and asylum seekers was informed by hu- manitarian concerns, apart from national security considerations "Due to the divergence of opinions among EU Member States, it will not be easy for the Maltese EU Presidency to reach a consensus on certain European legislative proposals that are currently on the table in a bid to address the migration crisis," Abela said. Pointing out that the EU still lacks ef- ficiency in the area of return and read- mission, he said that the Communication on establishing a new Partnership Frame- work with third countries under the Eu- ropean Agenda on Migration, presented by the European Commission on 7 June, aims to tackle the root causes of the phe- nomenon and is therefore a step in the right direction. This proposal should be implemented together with the Action Plan agreed up- on during last November's Valletta Sum- mit on Migration. Abela expressed his concern at the in- crease in the number of migrant fatalities in the Mediterranean: more than 2,500 people have died trying to cross the Med- iterranean to Europe so far in 2016. This is a significant increase, when compared to the 1,855 in the same period last year and the 57 of the year before.