Two new informants have come forward with fresh information on a scam that allegedly saw the Gozo ministry finance work on the private properties of constituents.

The latest person to volunteer information is the first not to be implicated in the scam.

The man claims he personally witnessed work being carried out on the property of a neighbour being overseen by Anthony Debono, husband of former Gozo Minister Giovanna Debono and the head of the department responsible for public construction works in Gozo up to the March 2013 election.

The other person who contacted the authorities last week is a contractor, who is pointing the finger at Żebbuġ, Gozo, mayor Nicky Saliba, whom, he claims, contracted him to carry out works on private properties and had him paid through public funds.

The jobs he was allegedly contracted to do included a garage in Żebbuġ, a yard in a private residence and a road on private land in Marsalforn.

These all involved thousands of euros worth of concrete and building supplies, which were furnished free of charge by the Construction and Maintenance Unit, the department headed by Mr Debono while his wife was minister.

When contacted for a reaction, Mr Saliba said his reaction “will be available from the police once I release my statement to them when I am called at the Police Station”.

The case was first revealed by Malta Today three weeks ago and, since then, five people have come forward all providing similar information. The latest contractor to speak out said he did not have direct contact with Mr Debono himself and could not actually point the finger at him but claimed that he would sometimes pick up materials for these works from the CMU’s warehouse.

The word on the street was that if you wanted some concrete and building materials you know whom you had to speak to

The development comes as Nationalist Party leader Simon Busuttil and general secretary Chris Said yesterday said the scam may have carried on even after the March 2013 election and that the Prime Minister should have the current police investigation extended to cover this period.

The claim fuelled a tit-for-tat, with Joseph Muscat pouncing on an acknowledgement by Dr Busuttil and Dr Said that they been approached by the original whistleblower, who was complaining he had not been paid for work he was asked to do by the Għarb mayor.

The PN leader and general secretary insisted the complaint presented to them was a matter of pending dues on public works and nothing to do with corruption.

However, the Labour Party stressed in its statements that Dr Busuttil and Dr Said were given all the details.

Gozitans who spoke to The Sunday Times of Malta described the scam as “an open secret”, only the information never made it to the authorities. “The word on the street was if you wanted some concrete and building materials you know whom you had to speak to,” another Gozitan said.

A source close to the investigation said: “It seems that the wall of silence is now collapsing and there’s a scramble for cover. Those involved want to seek protection. It will depend on the role of these informants in the scam and what evidence these informants can provide,” he said.

Attempts to obtain a comment from the former PN minister and her husband over the past days were unsuccessful.

So far only the first contractor to come forward has been granted immunity from prosecution under the terms of the Whistleblower Act, becoming the first such person since the law was passed last year.

The process is not automatic; the Attorney General decides on whether to accept an application following consultation with the Commissioner of Police and a judge. The protection can be partial and conditional on the informant’s level of cooperation.

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