San Ġwann mayor to face bribery charges
Mayor’s son gets suspended sentence
Left: Noel Agius (right) leaving court with his lawyer after pleading guilty to bribery charges. Right: Former mayor Joseph Agius is expected to be charged with bribery soon.
San Ġwann’s Nationalist Party mayor Joseph Agius is expected to be charged with soliciting bribes after his son, who was allegedly his accomplice, yesterday pleaded guilty to similar charges.
Mr Agius was not charged in court with his son as he is recovering at Mater Dei Hospital after suffering a heart attack.
His son, Noel Agius, 32, also from San Ġwann, was jailed for two years suspended for four after pleading guilty to soliciting bribes from at least three of the four contractors who submitted a tender to win the waste collection contract in the village, whose council is headed by his father.
Police Inspector Angelo Gafà told the court no money had changed hands but the request for commission was in itself a crime.
Inspector Gafà said although Mr Agius had refused to reply to any of the investigators’ questions – as is his Constitutional right – he later assisted police with their inquiries and is expected to continue assisting, even by testifying against other people allegedly involved in the affair.
Sources said police investigations into the bribery allegations at San Ġwann council have been going on for the past fortnight. The police started working on the case when they received an audio recording of people asking for commission for a council tender.
Mr Agius, who is unemployed, immediately admitted to charges of being an accomplice to corruption and to trading in influence. He confirmed his admission after he was given time by the court to reconsider his plea.
The court proceedings prompted Joseph Agius to resign as mayor and PN representative on the council.
The resignation was accepted immediately by the party which in a statement said it was party general secretary Paul Borg Olivier who had referred to the corruption claims to the police for investigation.
Problems within the PN-led San Ġwann council have been brewing for some time until, at the beginning of this month, the mayor and his deputy, Etienne Bonello Dupuis, requested the local government director to investigate claims made by fellow councillors, some of them within their own party, over how the council was operating.
They requested an inquiry “so as to put residents’ minds at rest that the claims are unfounded”.
The letter to the department was sent the day after a council meeting was suspended abruptly soon after councillors made claims about the council and the executive secretary.
The San Ġwann council is yet another PN-led council facing internal problems after those encountered by the Sliema council.
Two mayors and a deputy mayor of three other PN-led councils – St Venera, Żebbuġ and Għarb in Gozo – have resigned from the PN after claims of wrongdoing.
Former St Venera Mayor Elizabeth Vella resigned after an Auditor General report found irregularities in the handling of council funds. The Għarb deputy mayor, whose name cannot be published due to a court ban, resigned from the PN after being arrested and charged with defiling a minor.
Żebbug (Gozo) mayor Charles Saliba resigned from the party to defend himself from charges of misappropriating a council laptop after he allowed his daughter to use it to access Facebook.
13 Comments
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Joe E Galea
Aug 30th 2010, 08:11
Who's next?
P. Borg
Aug 30th 2010, 08:06
I hope the same treatment applied to Nikki Dimech is also applied to this mayor. I hope that PBO does the same as with the Sliema mayor. At least the PN will be fair to everyone. I hope that having this party treating fairly people is not a dream because I am afraid it is so. As it is said in Maltese - iz-zejt jitla f'wicc l-ilma. I have no doubt there are many other cases like this. Local Councils have been introduced only to waist more money. In such a small country the government should be enough able to control the whole islands. The more the people the more temptation there will be. Vapur b'hafna kaptani jereq.
N.Lawrence
Aug 29th 2010, 20:45
PN showing it's true colours.
R.Borg
Aug 29th 2010, 18:04
re: Joe Fenech But Mr.Nikki Dimech (ex-Sliema Council) was a very professional person and............ What we need in every strata of society are persons who enjoy high standards of integrity, honesty, morality, pure intentions and a spirit of genuine service.
Joe Fenech
Aug 29th 2010, 12:43
The problem with the councils is that the big majority is formed of people who are incompetent; quasi-illiterate or illiterate; people without any track record: JUST PEOPLE WHO LIKE GETTING INVOLVED. Councils are closer to peasant cooperatives than to political entities. It's a communist system where anke iz-Zeza ta' Bubaqra can be mayor!
Look at the difference with councils like those of Valletta who is chaired by a professional person...
Scrap the system: mayors and councillors are ruining towns rather than improving them.
James Galea
Aug 29th 2010, 12:55
Who do you think you are with such a comments. Are you still living in the aristocrat times when it was thought that only those that were Godsent can govern. The fact is that honest poeple exist in all ranks of education and dishonest poeple also. Its the electorat's duty to try to elect the honest ones and as democracy demands these can come from anywhere within the education ranking. Sometime I am more afraid of a dishonest professional then a "zeza ta bubaqra"
J. Debono
Aug 29th 2010, 13:54
Zeza ta' bubaqra (Zurrieq) is my aunt and I can assure you she can read.
C.Busuttil
Aug 29th 2010, 14:25
is-soltu pregudizju fuq il-proxxmu. Il-professionals li tant tiftahhar bihom huma l-akbar problema.
F'dan il-pajjiz is-settur privat tal-biki aktar minn dak pubbliku, kulhadd mohhu biss issir sinjur akkost ta' kollox. Tajbin biss biex jippruvaw jghadduk minn ras il-labra.
Hu esempju mill-Birgu jew San Lawrenz, mela l-Belt fejn bil-Kunsill u minghajru xorta. Il-Birgu u San Lawrenz ghandhom fost l-ahjar kunsilli f'dan il-pajjiz u zgur mhux maghmul minn professionals imma minn nies li jhobbu l-lokal taghhom, dik id-differenza.
Zeza ta' Buqara jista jkollha aktar sens komun u umilta mill-arroganza u s-suppervja ta' certu individwi edukati li l-uniku mertu taghhom huwa ghax jafu x'hadd ta' gewwa fil-partit.
Il-Problema li hemm fil-kunsilli hija lill-partiti huma nvoluti. In-nies li johorgu jigu maghzula mill-partit u mhux fl-interess tal-lokal. Illum nghid li Sant ghal darba kellu ragun m'hemmx post il-politika fil-kunsilli. Fil-lokalitajiet taghna hemm hafna nies kapaci nies li jekk ma jkunx hemm il-partiti fin-nofs jistghu jithajjru johorgu nies u mhemmx ghalfejn ikunu professuri fl-universita imma li jkunu jafu l-problemi tar-rahal jew belt taghhom
Mario Said
Aug 29th 2010, 16:34
U hallina sur Fenech!!!! Ma tridx ingibu l-Inkwizitur nergghu hux?
ASpiteri
Aug 29th 2010, 17:04
spot on!
down with this political class!
Fenech MD
Aug 30th 2010, 08:17
Sur Fenech
Taf x'nismaghhom jghidu, "Lil Gahan mhux il-glekk ghamlietu nies!"
Karl Consiglio
Aug 29th 2010, 12:00
Tut tut spiccaw in-nazzjonalisti.
Antoine Zammit
Aug 30th 2010, 08:14
ohlom...
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