Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/887355
maltatoday SUNDAY 15 OCTOBER 2017 4 News CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 BUNDY was faced by the con- cerns at the meeting with finan- cial controller Brian Galea, cor- porate services manager Edmund Tabone and sales manager Mario Micallef. "He said 'I couldn't give a toss about the board'," MaltaToday's source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said. The proposal was for a barter with tour agent Hamilton Travel, who would grant TVM a cruise holiday for the participants of the Eurovision qualifiers, in return for several minutes of television advertising. Bundy has already been accused of breaching procurement regu- lations with an unprecedented €500,000 car-leasing contract with Burmarrad Commercials for eight years. The PBS board are now requesting that an in- dependent inquiry establish the extent to which these rules were broken. "Bundy called in the manage- ment to give them a piece of his mind. It is not clear whether he has yet changed tack and backed down on the idea of the free cruise," the source said. News of Bundy's outburst reached the PBS board at a time when, in another development, an internal email correspondence in which the CEO calls PBS chair- man Tonio Portughese a "f***ing liar" was passed on to the Office of the Prime Minister. Portughese, long respected in the field of human resource man- agement, has already been told by the other directors that Bundy does not enjoy their confidence. At a meeting held last month, the PBS directors expressed a unanimous decision of no con- fidence in Bundy during a secret vote, but fell short of dismissing him. Bundy has hung on to his post, having stayed in the public eye as he promotes TVM's new pro- gramme schedule and in publicity shots with the PM's wife Michelle Muscat during a recent breast cancer charity event. Last week MaltaToday reported that Bundy was questioned by the board of directors about pro- grammes produced in-house at TVM, that were being planned for a farm-out to a private studio in Tarxien. The same studio had previously hosted a daytime TV production anchored by Bundy, years before his appointment. At the meeting the PBS direc- tors learned of a decision to have the popular daytime show TVAM, Niskata and Illum ma' Steph farmed out to private stu- dio Timecare. It was through the intervention of the board that TVAM was kept at the TVM studios. Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has already said that it was up to the PBS board to take a decision to dismiss him. Short of a straight dismissal, the PBS board decided to appoint an ad hoc inquiry to determine Bundy's culpability in the alleged breach of procurement rules on car leasing. The deal, which included Bun- dy's own company car, was never green-lit by the board. Directors said in minutes seen by MaltaToday that the issue had only been raised at board level once, back on 18 January, 2017, when Bundy referred to the PBS car fleet. "[He] noted that the cars were now old. He had sought advice on whether to buy new cars or go for leasing, and found that it was cheaper to go for leasing." Bundy was said to have used a procurement method employed only for minor purchases, by ob- taining three quotations from leasing suppliers. The person actually responsi- ble for procurement, Edmund Tabone, and financial controller Brian Grech, were completely side-lined. EMERGENCY CONSERVATION ORDER SECTION 58 OF THE DEVELOPMENT PLANNING ACT 2016 NOTICE The Planning Authority considers that the following property: Rural Structure also having a Second World War Observation Post at Triq Emvin Cremona, San Gwann carries a historical, architectural and contextual value. Following evidence of continued deterioration and imminent, irreversible damage, the Authority has issued an Emergency Conservation Order which protects the building as a Grade 2 scheduled site. The Emergency Conservation Order obliges the site owner to submit within 7 days a Restoration Method Statement (RMS). The RMS should clearly indicate how the site is to be secured and consolidated from danger of further collapse. The RMS should also indicate how reconstruction and repair works are to be carried out on those parts of the building that collapsed, or were demolished, or that may be in a poor structural condition. Should the site owner fail to abide by these obligations, the Planning Authority shall carry out the necessary works at the owner's expense. The site owner and the architect have been notified in accordance to law. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND The building is a small rural structure built around 300 years ago in traditional methods and materials. During the Second World War the British military added an observation post as part of the anti-air defence system around the Grand Harbour. This was a common practice considering the strategic location of the site. The military defence post had to blend in with the existing traditional building as part of its disguise from enemy aerial reconnaissance. The observation post at San Gwann was one of several different types of defences within the landscape dominated by the Tal-Qroqq heavy anti-aircraft battery. Other structures included radar emplacements and defence posts, known as pill boxes. Together, these defences served to protect this part of the Island from enemy aerial attacks and potential parachute landings. www.pa.org.mt PLANNING AUTHORITY Eurovision cruise 'raises eyebrows' Motorcyclist grievously injured CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 Efforts to curry favour with the three MPs came from Delia's closest aides, who attempted to rope in candi- dates for the deputy leadership who can lend weight and credibility to the PN leader. Fenech Adami had already indi- cated he would not run for deputy leader after resigning together with Simon Busuttil and Mario de Marco after the June elections. Marthese Portelli, who at one point suggested she was interested in the deputy leadership post, also decided not to stand. And Claudio Grech, once touted as leadership material before deciding not to take up the prospect, also turned down the offer to run for deputy. The contest for the deputy leader- ship for parliamentary affairs is now between the former minister Edwin Vassallo, who broke ranks with the Busuttil leadership last July when he voted against gay marriage in parliament, and the man he openly defied, party whip David Agius. Vassallo had backed Chris Said for leader but said he would readily withdraw from the race for deputy leader should Said run for the post. The other deputy leadership post for party affairs is now a contest be- tween MPs Robert Arrigo and Toni Bezzina, a lacklustre competition that has also shocked Delia's entou- rage and PN insiders. In the last days, it was Pierre Por- telli, Delia's close aide at the PN headquarters, who was also putting pressure on David Agius not to run for the post of deputy leader in the hope that Said would run uncon- tested, uniting the two factions as has been the tradition for PN lead- ership contests. People close to Delia wanted Said to become deputy leader in a bid to heal the rift that developed after a bruising leadership contest. How- ever, Said was not willing to run in a contest and with Agius refusing to drop his bid, the plan failed to ma- terialise. But on Friday Chris Said said he was ruling out contesting any of the deputy leadership posts in the PN. With 48% of the vote of paid-up PN members, the Gozitan MP narrowly lost the leadership to Adrian Delia last month. He said he had spoken a couple of times with the PN leader, informing him of his willingness to serve. "I told him [Delia] that I am ready to serve in whatever capacity he thinks best I can contribute. I also told him that I was not ready to go through a third electoral campaign in less than four months," he said, adding the campaigns had taken a toll on his family. A 32-year-old man of Naxxar was certified to be suffering grievous injuries following a traffic accident yesterday. The accident happened at 10am when the man in question was rid- ing his motorcycle, accompanied by a female pillion rider. The motor- bike collided with a Nissan Qashqai car being driven by a 28-year-old Naxxar resident. An ambulance took both the bike rider and his 26-year-old passenger to Mater Dei Hospital for treat- ment. The rider was certified as hav- ing suffered grievous injuries, while his female companion was found to have sustained light injuries. Police investigations are under- way. Heavyweights snub Delia John Bundy