Former finance minister Tonio Fenech yesterday insisted he had followed all rules and procedures in place when he bought a car from the government.
Replying to a parliamentary question last Monday, Finance Minister Edward Scicluna said his predecessor had decided on the eve of the last election to buy his second ministerial car, a Honda CRV Estate, for €1,908. The vehicle had been bought by the government in 2008 for €25,401.
Mr Fenech sought a clarification about the date of purchase and Prof. Scicluna corrected his reply, noting it had in fact been bought in 2004, not in 2008.
This newspaper asked the ministry for a copy of the rules governing the purchase of such cars by serving public officers but no such information was forthcoming by the time of writing.
A 2009 memo signed by the permanent secretary at the Finance Ministry, Alfred Camilleri, states that all retiring officers entitled to a fully-expensed vehicle had the right to purchase the car upon retirement.
It advises that the purchase price originally paid by the ministry or the department when the car was purchased “is to be depreciated by 25 per cent yearly on the reducing balanced method, the resulting amount being payable by the retiring officer in the ministry or department where the retiring officer was employed last”.
When contacted, Mr Fenech said that he had used the car for nine years and paid tax on it in the form of a levy on fringe benefits.
“Please note that I could have taken the yearly allowance of €7,000, which, after nine years, would amount to €63,000. Instead, I opted for the use of a car, which, after nine years, I bought for about €2,000”, he said.
Asked why he chose to buy the car just three days before the election and whether this meant he knew his party would be defeated, Mr Fenech said: “Well, I think it was not a surprise that, after 25 years in power, the PN was likely to return to the Opposition benches.”
As part of their financial package, Cabinet members are entitled to the use of a second car, in addition to the use of a fully-expensed official vehicle.