Economic Affairs Minister Chris Cardona officially informed Parliament yesterday that Karl Cutajar, the 18-year-old who was appointed director of government company Fort Security Services, had resigned.

Replying to a parliamentary question by PN deputy leader Beppe Fenech Adami, Dr Cardona said that he received a letter from Mr Cutajar to Fort Security Services chairman John Busuttil thanking him for giving him the opportunity to be of service but saying he was renouncing his position because of “harsh political victimisation” by the Opposition.

On the Opposition’s allegation that Mr Cutajar was a relative of the Chief of Staff at the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Dr Cardona said that just days before relinquishing his post as MEP, Opposition Leader Simon Busuttil had pushed for the engagement of two assistants to Dar Malta in Brussels.

Rising on a point of order, Dr Busuttil said the two people were not his relatives and had passed through a “rigorous” selection process. Had Mr Cutajar passed any sort of exam before his appointment to the Fort board?

Mr Cutajar would have received no remuneration

Dr Cardona said Dr Busuttil should know that no one needed to pass any exam before being appointed to serve on a board. Mr Cutajar had been given employment at Mimcol in a legal process and would have received no remuneration for his services to Fort Security Services. Dr Busuttil’s former assistants had each been given a financial package of €80,000.

Dr Cardona cited the case of a 20-year-old woman with Nationalist affiliation who had been engaged in the EU section at Dar Malta and then given a permanent position with a financial package of €90,000. If Dr Busuttil really wanted to clean up Maltese politics, he had better start looking around himself.

Dr Busuttil said he could confirm there were no relatives of his at Dar Malta. The same could not be said of Parliamentary Secretary Ian Borg and Finance Minister Edward Scicluna, whose cousin and daughter respectively were employed at Dar Malta.

On a point of order, Dr Borg said his cousin and Prof. Scicluna’s daughter had been selected for Brussels after they had been in the public service since 2010. His cousin’s posting to Brussels had meant a financial loss of €4,000 a year.

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