Sant statement judged to be fair comment

The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal filed by the prime minister's personal assistant over a press statement released by the opposition leader in 1993.

Richard Cachia Caruana claimed libel over a press statement released by Alfred Sant on February 25, 1993, which claimed that Cachia Caruana held a leading shareholding in a car rental company regularly awarded car hire contracts for government ministries and departments.

The statement had said this connection raised serious questions about the correctness of public administration.

The Civil Court had dismissed Cachia Caruana's suit and concluded that the press release was fair comment on facts that were substantially proven.

On appeal, Chief Justice Vincent DeGaetano, Mr Justice Joseph D. Camilleri and Mr Justice Joseph A. Filletti noted that Cachia Caruana's main complaint was that the first court had wrongly decided that the press release was based on facts that were substantially true.

The first court had declared that if Dr Sant could prove that the facts mentioned in his press release were substantially true, then his comments on these facts would be fair comment.

The principal facts alleged by Dr Sant were that Cachia Caruana had a leading share in a car rental company, and that this company was regularly awarded car hire contracts for government ministries and departments.

The comment consisted in the statement that this raised serious issues about the correctness of the public administration.

The Court of Appeal ruled that it ought not to disturb the findings on the facts as established by the first court.

It resulted that Cachia Caruana had a 5.2 per cent shareholding in the company Sterling Car Rentals Limited, and that he had never been a director of this company.

However, the point of the press release was whether it was ethically correct for a person close to the executive branch of power to have a shareholding in a company that competed for, and was awarded, government contracts.

By the date of the press release, it resulted that Sterling Car Rentals Ltd had been awarded three government contracts, all of which were for a substantial value.

The Court of Appeal declared that it was not implying that there was any irregularity in the award of these contracts, for no irregularities had resulted in the tendering process.

It however concluded that the press release was not libellous in Cachia Caruana's regard, for it consisted in fair comment.