Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/761508
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 11 DECEMBER 2016 26 Letters A clinical analysis of the evidence and testimony in the criminal proceedings of private investigator Joe Zahra, together with comments from key witnesses in the case, reveal that the fabricated investigator's report, which has opened a Pandora's box for government and the PN, could have been delivered to Castille in May – weeks before the crucial 11 June 2004 meeting between the prime minister and Simed reps. The office of the prime minister has denied receiving the report before the 11 June meeting held with Frank Farrugia and lawyers Joseph Fenech and Raphael Fenech Adami. The report, which has led to a court sentence of two years' imprisonment for its author and also opened up renewed speculation over the resignation of former minister John Dalli, was delivered to the OPM as early as May 2004, this newspaper can confirm. This was stated by Raphael Fenech Adami, Simed's legal representative, who confirmed on two occasions that he had presented a sealed envelope with the report to a per- sonal secretary of Gonzi, "a couple of weeks before" the 11 June meeting. This is also partly corroborated from Fenech Adami's testimony in the Zahra case, who twice stated in court that he was handed the report in a sealed envelope along with a covering letter for the prime minister. "Frank passed it on to me, sealed, and I personally took it to the office of the prime minister, in fact I wanted to give it to him personally but I gave it to a personal secretary because he [Gonzi] was in a meet- ing," he told the prosecution in Zahra's trial. Contacted by MaltaToday, Fenech Adami confirmed he delivered the report to a per- sonal secretary in Castille "a couple of weeks before the 11 June meeting". He said he does not remember who the personal secre- tary was. The head of Gonzi's secretariat, Edgar Galea-Curmi, has claimed the report could not have been discussed with anyone prior to 11 June, "given that this report was presented directly to the prime minister by Dr Joe Fenech during this meeting. Neither the prime minister nor I had seen the report prior to this meeting." Galea-Curmi maintained that prior to the meeting, "no report was ever delivered to the OPM by Dr Raphael Fenech Adami." But contacted again yesterday, Raphael Fenech Adami said he delivered a sealed envelope which contained the Zahra report, to Castille some time in late May. Contacted once again, Edgar Galea-Curmi stated: "Dr Fenech Adami doesn't know what he's saying." Frank Farrugia, Simed's representative, yesterday told MaltaToday he could not re- member giving Fenech Adami the envelope or when the lawyer was sent over to the OPM to fix a meeting with Gonzi. "I have no idea… I don't remember," Farrugia said. News that the report was at the prime minister's office weeks before the 11 June meeting has not come as a surprise to John Dalli, who last week told MaltaToday that days before his resignation, Gonzi had told him he "couldn't have a minister in his Cabinet under investigation" – when Gonzi only submitted the report to the Commis- sioner of Police for investigation a week and a half after the resignation. Contacted yesterday, Dalli said: "I have said what I had to say about the report and its consequences. If what you are saying is correct then the facts how they unfolded cannot but worry me as they confirm my worst fears." The timing of the delivery of the report coincides with the start of the IRISL and air- line ticket scandals, the former on 23 May and the latter on 9 June. After Dalli told Gonzi in an email on 10 June of his concern at the "origin of the attacks", the prime min- ister met Simed's reps on 11 June. John Dalli resigned on 3 July. Unknown to him, during this time the OPM had a copy of the Joe Zahra report. With Raphael Fenech Adami's statement to MaltaToday, it would appear that the report preceded the two allegations involving Dalli. Dalli yesterday confirmed that meet- ings have been held with Gonzi in the last days, but chose not comment on whether any arrangement with Gonzi had been reached. "All I want is for the situation to be normalised and my integrity restored. I want our party to move forward in a united and inclusive way to win the next elections. This is what I have been saying all along, in my contribution to the press and in my speeches to the party council," Dalli said. Revelations that Zahra report reached OPM earlier than reported 10 December, 2006 Send your letters to: The Editor, MaltaToday, MediaToday Ltd. Vjal ir-Rihan, San Gwann SGN 9016 | Fax: (356) 21 385075 E-mail: newsroom@mediatoday.com.mt. Letters to the Editor should be concise. No pen names are accepted. Regulator needs to take action on coop In your report 'Government slaps fishing cooperative with judicial letter over unpaid loan (6 November, 2016), I was intrigued to look into the accounts of the Ghaqda Koper- attiva tas-Sajd Ltd, whose accounts for 2015 are not yet available. In an Excel spreadsheet of the 2011-2014 figures, the resulting table delivers a net worth of the coop that is negative. An audi- tors' note to the accounts says that water and electricity bills amounting to €91,000 are not reflected in the books! This implies that the net worth of the coop might actually be €178,000 – (negative)! The figures in the Profit and Loss account are also eye-catching. While the average yearly turnover is €62,000, the accounts show an average yearly increase of €47,000 in the Provision for Doubtful Debts and an average yearly loss of €41,000. The Balance Sheet shows a debtors' figure of €87,500. This is equivalent to 16.8 months turnover! On the other hand, the creditors' figure reads €207,000. Adding the amount of €91,000, for unsettled water and electricity bills, we get a global figure of €298,000 and this makes the picture really gruesome. No wonder the government slapped the Coop with a judicial letter over an unpaid loan. The auditors, Parker Randall Turner, have been highlighting serious shortcomings and issuing adverse opinions on the Coop's ac- counts for a very long time. Extracts from the 2012 and the 2014 audit reports are just two examples. Has any action ever been taken in this regard? Certified true copies of the audited financial statements, together with the audit report are submitted yearly to the Coopera- tives Board – the regulator. There are some pertinent questions that need to be answered, namely: Who is responsible for the Co-operative's accounts? Why are the 2015 accounts not yet available? Does the list of debtors include any past or present officials of the Coop? "Some €30,000 in government subsidies were used to pay for diesel instead of electricity" – the Coop does not use any diesel fuel. Were the fishermen informed about the project to set up a freezing/cold storage and packing facility for their use? How come fishermen do not have access to this facility? Does it really exist? The auditors have stated that not all trans- actions were included in the system, particu- larly with respect to debtors and transactions with banks. What does the Coop have to say on this? With respect to the 2011 accounts the audi- tors stated that they could not confirm the value and existence of €7,365 stock of fishing tackle included under current assets. Can the Coop explain? The auditors also stated that an honoraria of €5,600 in favour of members and the sec- retary could not be verified with any docu- mentary evidence. What is really going on? The majority of fishermen are totally disoriented and disconnected from the Coop. They go as far as saying that they have no cooperative. I say that the Ghaqda Koperat- tiva tas-Sajd Ltd has long been dead. Yet it could be convenient for somebody to live over a dead body. Martin Caruana Marsaxlokk EllaOne and Plan B: not the same thing The draft Guidance for Pharmacists on the safe supply of Levonorgestrel 1500mcg (Plan B) and Ulipristal Acetate 30mg (El- laOne) issued by the Medicines Authority cannot in fact be safe at all. How can a 1-, 2-, 3-, 4- or 5-day old embryo be safe when the guidelines talk of pregnancy, thus not recognising the first five days of the embryo's life? If the woman ovulated yesterday and had the pill today, how can the claim of the pill working only "before the ovum is released from the ovary" make sense? These guide- lines refer to the WHO (World Health Organisation), which though being a glori- ous organisation in many areas, is in favour of abortion as it does not recognise the first five days of the embryo. Proper safety includes both the safety of the woman and that of the embryo. It is imperative that it is made clear to the public that these two pills are different. The Parliamentary Committee has already made it clear that EllaOne can prevent a living embryo from implanting itself in the uterus or even kill an embryo after implan- tation, so much so that EllaOne is efficient even 120 hours after it is taken (Parliamen- tary Committee Report, pg 7). On the other hand Plan B, if taken at a certain time before ovulation, can act as an anovulatory, which means that it pre- vents the ovary from releasing an egg and therefore is not abortifacient. Plan B, after appropriate testing (such as a urine test on the woman) to check whether she has ovulated or not, has been used in hospitals abroad which acknowledge that life starts from fertilisation. Thus, only Plan B with ovulation testing should be allowed. EllaOne is against our laws and should not be licensed. "Maltese laws determine that life starts with the fer- tilisation of the ovum. Thus, any product which terminates a pregnancy after ferti- lisation can be abortive." (Parliamentary Committee Report, pg 8). Getting it right the morning after for us means that women, especially those who end up victims of rape, are to be protected as much as possible but we cannot afford to have "second victims" – an innocent, newly conceived embryo, through a chemical abortion. Martha Fitz et al, Addresses supplied Right of reply: Foundation for Tomorrow's Schools Reference is made to the article pblished on MaltaToday, 'FTS tenderer f lagged Bartolo aide in 2015' (4 December, 2016) and to the article by Saviour Balzan, 'Just another Sunday' published in the same edition. I categorically deny that I met any complainant related to the ten- dering of school furniture on the request of Mr Philip Rizzo. Furthermore, I categorically deny that I know Mr Ciliberti or that I ever held a meeting with either Mr Ciliberti or any other complainant in respect of tender complaints. I also categorically deny sanction- ing of direct orders before these are directed to the ministry of finance unless the direct orders are en- dorsed, approved, and recommnded by the respective hierarchy pertain- ing to the pertinent entities falling within the remit of this ministry. As a matter of fact I refrain from sanctioning any such requests un- less these are processed as stated. Joseph Caruana Permanent Secretar y, Ministr y for Education and Employment Editorial Note MaltaToday stands by its story: this newspaper has clarified that the CEO at the time was not Philip Rizzo and that the permanent secretary contacted the said complainant in April 2015 when the minister was alerted. On the other points, this newspaper never said that Mr Joseph Caruana knew Sandro Ciliberti or that he had met him.