Council appeals budget cut

The Fgura council has filed an appeal against a government decision to slash the locality’s budget for 2011 by €49,439 after irregularities were found in the way roads contracts were granted last year.

The council called for the budget not to be cut or, at least, a more realistic amount to be deducted. The appeal was filed before the director of local government following a motion the council approved by eight votes in favour and one abstention.

Last year, the council failed to make a call for tenders for the resurfacing of two roads and instead issued a direct order, which is against established procedure. At the time, the council was led by former mayor Darren Marmarà.

The council’s motion said that, although it had never approved the irregular procedure, the works had been approved by the council’s architect and paid for after being approved by the Department of Local Government. For this reason, the council argued, it was unfair to cut its budget as this would ultimately hinder work carried out in the best interests of Fgura residents.