Sant, Nationalist MP trade charges, play cat and mouse

Alfred Sant finally accused Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando of "corruption" over a development permit granted at Mistra, but only after giving him the slip and hastily making his way to Malta after the Nationalist MP had followed the Labour leader to Gozo to rebut the allegations.

Once Dr Pullicino Orlando made it to Mistra to confront Dr Sant, who had managed to leave by the time the Nationalist MP arrived, he told waiting reporters that the Labour leader was a "coward" for not making the allegations in his presence and that he would be suing him for defamation.

Dr Pullicino Orlando had twice challenged the Labour leader - by being present at his news conferences - to make the allegations in his presence. But Dr Sant managed to avoid him during the hastily-called press conference in Mistra yesterday.

The Nationalist MP, renowned for his environmental credentials, had heard a few days ago that Dr Sant intended to make allegations against him, and attended two news conferences by the Labour leader - the second of which was in Gozo yesterday morning - to rebut them.

As the press conference ended and while Dr Pullicino appeared to be distracted by reporters, Dr Sant made a quick exit and headed for the ferry terminal in Mġarr. His party then gave the media just 45 minutes' notice of a news conference in Mistra.

Yet, when asked why they were not given more notice of the news conference, the Labour leader said it was due to the fact that the MLP delegation could not be sure till the last minute that it would make it to Mistra on time.

During the press conference Dr Sant said that the Malta Environment and Planning Authority had granted an outline permit for a discotheque in Mistra which could take 4,000 people and then extended to 8,000 people. He said the facility would be built on land belonging to Dr Pullicino Orlando outside the development zone.

Dr Sant said that Dr Pullicino Orlando was the owner of land at Mistra on which he had twice applied to build a reservoir in the late 1990s, with Mepa refusing both applications.

In October 2005, a third person applied for the development of a nightclub. The applicant made it clear that the land was not his own and that he was acting on behalf of someone else, Dr Sant said.

In March 2006, the Development Control Commission was advised to refuse the permit because the site was outside the development zone, and it was earmarked for the EU's Natura 2000 project.

Dr Sant said the disco was to be called the Spin Club and it was already being advertised.

"This is a blatant case of corruption which I think Dr Gonzi knows about and if he doesn't, what will he do about it," Dr Sant asked.

In an attempt to catch up with the Labour leader, Dr Pullicino Orlando boarded the next available ferry from Gozo and rushed to Mistra. But the Labour leader had already departed.

Dr Pullicino Orlando confirmed - as indeed he had written in The Times yesterday - that he owned land at Mistra, but he said it was rented out to third parties.

He said he did not even know the details of the project Dr Sant had spoken about and had never met the applicant for the development permit.

As well as saying he would sue for defamation, the Nationalist MP challenged the Labour leader to take the claim to the Police Commissioner.

Dr Pullicino Orlando told the media he had been informed by sources close to Dr Sant that he was going to end up a victim of Labour's mud-slinging campaign and since he had nothing to hide or be ashamed of, he discussed the issue with the Prime Minister who asked him to attend Dr Sant's public activities so that he could defend himself.

Asked what he thought about the development, Dr Pullicino Orlando said he had never seen the full development application; but had nothing against the outline development application - a dancing platform, underground toilets and stores.