Borg Olivier denies colluding with police over dismissal of ex-mayor

The Nationalist Party general secretary Paul Borg Olivier yesterday denied colluding with the police when he dismissed former Sliema mayor Nikki Dimech from the party following the latter’s interrogation over bribery allegations.

Taking the witness stand, Dr Borg Olivier produced evidence and excerpts from telephone bills to disprove allegations made by the newspaper MaltaToday, which claimed he had colluded with the police before getting rid of Mr Dimech.

Dr Borg Olivier filed the libel suit against MaltaToday editor Matthew Vella and managing editor Saviour Balzan following the publication of two articles on August 22 last year. The first article, entitled PBO Campaigns In Sliema As He Expels Dimech, and the second entitled You Simply Don’t Have It, an opinion piece by Mr Balzan, had alleged collusion with the police which was not true, Dr Borg Olivier said.

The phone records noted two telephone calls on August 11, 2010, the first made at 2 p.m. by Dr Borg Olivier to Mr Dimech while on his way to Gozo and the second, at 7.14 p.m., which was a repeat of the first, he said.

The first phone call was made after he assumed that the interrogation was over, adding that he was fully aware of the interrogation because Mr Dimech had told him he was to be questioned by the police in an e-mail two days earlier.

When Mr Dimech did not answer the phone he tried again a few hours later and Mr Dimech told him that he had admitted to the police that he had asked for a commission in the award of a tender.

Dr Borg Olivier also noted that MaltaToday had carried a story on its online edition at 17.59 p.m. stating that Mr Dimech had been questioned by the police, a full hour before he spoke to Mr Dimech.

He said that the party knew of allegations of financial irregularities within the Sliema local council as early as January. In May a former contracts manager, Stephen Buhagiar, had spoken to him and contested his termination from the council and Dr Borg Olivier told him to seek legal advice.

However, in that same meeting Mr Buhagiar had also made serious allegations about Mr Dimech involving the payment of commission and he told him to speak to the police.

Dr Borg Olivier then spoke to Parliamentary Secretary Chris Said who in turn passed on the allegations to the police.

During cross examination, lawyer Charmaine Galea, appearing for Mr Balzan and Mr Vella, asked for the e-mail, in which Mr Dimech had informed Dr Borg Olivier that he was going to be interrogated, to be exhibited.

Lawyer Joe Zammit Meampel said the e-mail could be exhibited only in part because it contained information that was sensitive and concerned the health of a third person.

Dr Galea insisted that the e-mail be exhibited in its entirety to which Dr Zammit Meampel said he was not going to allow this breach of data protection to take place only for Dr Galea to go and give the e-mail to Mr Balzan who would splash it on the papers.

Magistrate Francesco Depasquale turned down Dr Galea’s request and the e-mail will be exhibited in part during the next sitting.