Mepa on its toes

Andrew Calleja has accused the audit office of not delivering, which, I assume, must be some sort of sick joke on his part.

How can the office operate properly when it is being prevented from doing so by the actions of Mr Calleja himself? He says that since Joe Falzon was re-appointed he has not done any work. What exactly does he expect him to do when the chairman had stripped him of a proper secretary and an investigator?

"I just cannot understand why the audit office cannot work without (outgoing investigating officer Carmel) Mr Cacopardo," laments Mepa's chairman. Might I suggest that Mr Calleja's lack of ability to understand this situation is the main problem.

All Mr Calleja seems to do is reiterate the same lame reasons for blocking Mr Cacopardo's re-appointment. We've heard it all before, so change the record. The fact is that the audit office was the only part of Mepa that was doing its job properly and indeed knew what it was doing. By hamstringing it the way it has been since this affair started, Mepa has been allowed to get away with murder. Perhaps that is the whole point of the exercise.

Since one cannot doubt the honesty and integrity of Mr Cacopardo, the only assumption left is that he is feared.

Mr Calleja says that Mr Cacopardo has publicly questioned the credentials of the man appointed director of environmental protection. Given Mr Cacopardo's honesty and incorruptibility, it is my belief that he would not question the credentials of anyone unless he had a very good reason for doing so.

Mr Calleja suggests that the biggest problem with Mr Cacopardo is his conflict of interest, which, of course, is nonsense. It is however rich that this should come from Mr Calleja. As chairman of Mepa, empowered, among other things with the protection of the environment, he is blocking the re-appointment of a man who cares passionately about the environment and, by so doing, he is preventing Mepa from operating properly. A conflict of interest indeed!