If this is what they mean by chilling effect, this morning I’m feeling the shudder. In 2019, Yorgen Fenech was known as the owner of 17 Black and therefore the man behind one of the Dubai companies that Brian Tonna’s Nexia BT told Panama’s Mossack Fonseca would be paying $5,000 a day to Hearnville and [...]
From my article in The Sunday Times: "I have written about David Gatt, about Chris Cardona, about Keith Schembri. They can’t have liked what I wrote about them and they’re roaming free without a realistic prospect of that condition changing. Is someone 10 metres away from me, watching me as I write this by my home [...]
Earlier today I spoke at a seminar organised jointly between Repubblika and the Ragusa chapter of Italian anti-mafia NGO Libera. This was my intervention. Malta has always had to be creative about finding ways of making money. The most remarkable thing about it is that it is small. And crowded. Primary resources are inexistent and manufacturing [...]
Filed by someone I know. Having served as a senior public officer in political office both under the Fenech Adami and the Gonzi administrations, the current situation in the country makes me even more frustrated than many. What we are witnessing across the board is the way the culture of ‘u ejja’ has permeated every [...]
Anthony Abela Medici, commissioner for voluntary organisations, is moving to ban Repubblika. One of the trumped up charges he came up with is that Repubblika is essentially a front for a political party. One presumes he has the Nationalist Party in mind. Except for inveterate watchers of One TV and exclusive admirers of KullĦadd's cartoonist [...]
Do you remember the BWSC “scandal”? Do you remember accusations of corruption? I worked at the Ministry responsible for Enemalta at the time. I headed Austin Gatt’s personal staff. I was at meetings with Enemalta officials when the decision to purchase a new plant was taken. And then, as always happened at the time, the [...]
From a piece in today's Times I co-wrote with Alessandra Dee Crespo and Vicki Ann Cremona "You’ll be pleased to know then that we shall continue writing our articles and we shall continue levelling criticism where it needs to be addressed. We shall also continue offering our suggestions to make Malta a better place to [...]
For some time now we have tried to reconstruct in our minds and in our writings the killing of Daphne Caruana Galizia. We heard Matthew’s testimony. We heard evidence from eye witnesses on the scene. We heard the reconstructions of the forensic experts. And now, today, we heard one of the killers. We heard him [...]
I can't imagine this gives pleasure to anyone but with the exception of the ever-loyal trolls, no one has any confidence left that the government's instructions and actions are of any use in fighting the covid pandemic. This is a catastrophic state of affairs. Consider how the president of the doctor's union is telling people [...]
Pro-democracy NGO Repubblika gave ambassadors and heads of mission accredited to Malta today copies of the charges it received from the Commissioner for Voluntary Organisations and its reply. In a memorandum to embassies, Repubblika's President Robert Aquilina said the NGO "we vehemently deny all these charges even as we underline the fact that we have [...]
Photo: https://manueldelia.com/2020/06/government-considering-allowing-captain-morgan-prisoners-on-land-by-21-june/ A Home Ministry spokesperson confirmed to this website today that the government has abandoned plans to hire a ship on which to detain migrants rescued in Malta’s search and rescue area outside territorial waters instead of bringing rescued people ashore. Plans for an off-shore prison-ship were firmed up last July when [...]
Doctors said in a statement today they are gravely concerned about the current situation our health system is in. "The massive spike in the number of new infections has, as expected, translated into a surge in the number of patients requiring intensive care. Over the past 24 hours, the fifth intensive care unit has been [...]
These people write their own comedy skits.
The Council of Europe’s Committee to Prevent Torture received allegations of deliberate physical ill-treatment by police officers and or detention facility staff of apprehended or detained migrants. The Committee also received allegations concerning excessive use of force by Detention Service staff and private security staff at Lyster Barracks. At least three migrants alleged that the [...]
I realise this is self-referential almost to the point of bragging, but thank you Jason Farrugia. The comment was uploaded under the asset recovery post of this morning. Jason Farrugia: All these articles and arguments make perfect sense, and I couldn't applaud you more for the way you eloquently put facts and your opinions about [...]
The country is bracing itself for the announcement of a fresh record of covid infections. We are now somewhere at a rate of infections which is proportionately about 10 times as high as the UK. They have considerably stricter restrictions there and their health authorities continue to advise caution. The pattern is repeated in other [...]
In the series of frantic box-ticking to convince Moneyval that Malta has transformed itself from a Bacchanalian pirate bay into a sin-free theocracy, Edward Zammit Lewis yesterday unveiled drawings for a glorified warehouse where the government intends to store luxury goods taken from criminals who bought them spending proceeds from their illicit activities. Times of [...]
Monica Vella, first left, on the day of her appointment to the bench with Joe Mifsud. Giovanni Grixti and Myriam Hayman were made judges on the same day. A few days ago, we watched all bemused as the police charged the persons they believe are responsible for the deaths of two tourists decapitated [...]
Robert Abela told journalists yesterday that he has instructed all CEOs of government entities to refrain from doing business outside of their public roles. He described this as the “new mentality” to replace the mentality that allowed Johann Buttigieg to negotiate a business partnership with Yorgen Fenech while regulating his barbarian invasion of towers and monstrous [...]
Don’t they teach logic in schools anymore? Robert Abela told the press yesterday that leaders in the public service have been instructed not to conduct any business outside of their public roles. He called this a “new mentality”. Why did he need to do it? Because, one must presume, he thinks the “old mentality” of [...]