The Prime Minister is standing by Equal Opportunities Minister Helena Dalli, taking her word for it that illegal house works on a property she owns are not her doing.
The case involves Dr Dalli’s property in Żejtun, which is riddled with illegalities and where construction work continued last week in spite of an enforcement order from 2011.
Addressing a press conference on the Budget at Auberge de Castille, Dr Muscat answered in a sarcastic tone that he enjoyed questions like this because it showed there was little to criticise in the Budget.
Things could always be done better
This newspaper asked Dr Muscat about Dr Dalli’s property and the court’s referral of Labour MP Luciano Busuttil to the Commission for the Administration of Justice. So far, the Prime Minister had not commented on the two contentious cases.
“Helena Dalli has explained that the place is covered by a promise of sale agreement and the works were not done by her but by the person who is buying the property,” he said.
When it was pointed out that the place was still under her name since the sale contract had not been signed, Dr Muscat said the property was owned by a company.
But this property is part of the assets of Pada Ltd, a company owned by Dr Dalli and her husband Patrick.
The company is listed as part of Dr Dalli’s assets in the ministerial declaration of assets.
The Prime Minister said it did not result that works on the site were being done by Pada Ltd, even though the company’s construction vehicles were present on the premises last week while work continued.
Asked whether this was acceptable behaviour by a minister, Dr Muscat insisted “things could always be done better”.
The Nationalist Party accused the Prime Minister of lying to defend his minister’s illegal works.
It said Dr Dalli owned the place and the construction vehicles on the site and knew what was going on.
“Dr Muscat lied when he said the bulldozer that is on site did not belong to Minister Dalli’s company,” the PN said, insisting the Prime Minister could not be believed.
With reference to Dr Busuttil’s case, the Prime Minister said he would leave it to the commission to carry out its investigation.
“I will not enter into the merits of the case… Luciano Busuttil has said he was not advising the winning bidder at the time,” he said.
The Appeals Court last week annulled a waste contract awarded by the Cospicua council and ordered that Dr Busuttil be investigated for “serious allegations” that he had advised the council to disqualify a bidder to favour his client.
Dr Busuttil has denied the charge, insisting he had severed ties with his previous client a few weeks before giving the council legal advice.
kurt.sansone@timesofmalta.com