Transport Minister Joe Mizzi is not worried that Transport Malta’s chairman and CEO has a private business.
Contacted in the wake of reports that James Piscopo, a former Labour Party CEO, had recently set up a private company to provide “general management and company advisory services”, Mr Mizzi said he saw nothing wrong in the venture.
“I don’t see any problem that James Piscopo carries his private business, as I couldn’t find any conflict of interest in all this”, he told this newspaper.
“What [Piscopo] is doing has nothing to do with his role at Transport Malta, and so there is no conflict of interest,” Mr Mizzi insisted. When it was pointed out to him that Mr Piscopo was conducting private consultancy work at the same time that, as CEO of a government agency, he oversaw multimillion-euro projects, Mr Mizzi said he was not worried on the issue.
He compared Mr Piscopo’s double role to that of a member of Parliament who was also a lawyer with an active practice.
“Why are you surprised?
“There are MP lawyers from the Opposition – the deputy leader himself – who in the morning defends criminals in court and in the evening comes to Parliament to legislate against them,” the minister said. “If I had found Piscopo to be involved in some conflict, then I would have taken action, but otherwise, he can do business”, he added.
Mr Piscopo insists that his private business has nothing to do with his work at Transport Malta.
A few days after Labour returned to power in 2013, Mr Piscopo, a former Air Malta employee who was later recruited by Joseph Muscat as Labour’s CEO, was given a political appointment as full-time chairman and CEO of Transport Malta, with an €85,000 financial package.
Last February, Mr Piscopo, 38, registered a private company, Undecim Five Investments Ltd, in which he is the sole director.
The company was registered by accountant Robert Borg, who is also the financial controller of the General Workers’ Union and is involved in many of the union’s commercial entities.
According to the memorandum of understanding, which was filed at the Malta Financial and Services Authority, Mr Piscopo’s private company is “to provide general management and company advisory services”.
Piscopo’s company is registered at Mr Borg’s office address at the A3 Towers, in Marsa.
Part of the same building was leased by the GWU to Transport Malta for €500,000 a year. Mr Piscopo’s accountant is also a director of GWU Holdings Ltd, which owns the building that was leased to Transport Malta.
Until last year, Mr Borg also served as the company secretary at Transport Malta.
ivan.camilleri@timesofmalta.com