Mepa audit officer presses for reply on investigating officer

The Malta Environment and Planning Authority's audit officer, Joe Falzon, has written to the chairman demanding an immediate response on his request to reinstate investigating officer Carmel Cacopardo.

Mr Falzon said he expects a reply from chairman Andrew Calleja by the end of the week, adding he will accept no compromise solution. He has threatened to resign unless Mr Cacopardo, whose contract expired last April, is reinstated.

The chairman had not officially voiced his objections to Mr Cacopardo's reinstatement until last Monday, when Mepa published a letter addressed to Environment Minister George Pullicino in which Mr Calleja explains the board's misgivings.

In his letter, the chairman says the board is concerned about Mr Cacopardo's articles in newspapers, and in particular the fact that he has questioned the credentials of the man recently appointed Director for Environment Protection, a post for which Mr Cacopardo himself had applied.

Mr Calleja also pointed out that Mr Cocopardo chaired a political meeting about Mepa organised by Alternattiva Demokratika.

Mr Falzon dismissed the authority's objections, insisting the only relevant criterion was whether Mr Cacopardo was suitable for the job.

"As far as I am concerned, Mepa is involved in this matter insofar as it has to provide adequate staff for the audit office. I had made it clear when I was reappointed that I would accept no interference from Mepa or outside of it and that the audit office staff would be appointed or dismissed upon my recommendation."

Moreover, he insisted that Mepa's charge was groundless.

"Had he attacked Mepa on the recent Ramla l-Hamra case, I would have understood the authority's arguments. But one can make general arguments in public about the authority without having to be accused of having a bias. Following Mepa's logic, if a judge writes an article about the law this means he cannot preside over a case."

Mr Falzon also said there were board members forming part of the political parties' "inner circles" and that the authority employed MPs.

"Marie Briguglio, who works for Mepa, chaired a meeting similar to that chaired by Carmel Cacopardo at the PN general conference. Why is there no problem there? Not to mention that Carmel Cacopardo himself was a PN candidate. Why was this not a problem previously?"

As for Mr Cacopardo's public criticism of the selection of the Director for Environmental Protection, Mr Falzon explained that he would not assign Mr Cacopardo to a case involving that official.

"There have been cases where I investigated a case personally because Mr Cacopardo's was involved directly. This is the same. But I don't think he should be punished because he questioned the fact that Mepa chose Martin Seychell and not him if he felt the decision was unfair," he said.