Justice Minister Owen Bonnici defended the Prime Minster, who accused former PN minister Jason Azzopardi of signing 100 encroachment permits, although the Auditor General mentioned 25.
Joseph Muscat said in Parliament that Dr Azzopardi had signed 100 encroachment permits in the three months preceding the last election. However, according to a report just released by the National Audit Office, 25 encroachment permits were issued between December 2012 and March 2013 and only 13 were authorised by the then minister for fair competition – that is, Dr Azzopardi.
At a press conference yesterday, during which he lambasted the former government over the NAO findings, Dr Bonnici was asked whether the Prime Minster had given the wrong information to Parliament. He defended the Prime Minister, stating that “one of the permits included 60 concessions”.
You have to be ridiculous to cite this as 60 different permits
When it was pointed out that Dr Muscat had said in Parliament Dr Azzopardi had signed 100 permits and not 13, Dr Bonnici insisted the Prime Minster was correct. When approached about the 60 concessions point raised by Dr Bonnici, Dr Azzopardi said the minister must have been referring to a permit granting encroachment for 40 newspaper stands.
“You have to be ridiculous to cite this as 60 different permits,” Dr Azzopardi said.
Addressing the press conference, Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis said the NAO report showed the PN lacked credibility when it came to good governance.
Accusing PN leader Simon Busuttil of applying a different yardstick when dealing with scandals committed under the Nationalist administration, Dr Zammit Lewis said Dr Busuttil was PN deputy leader “when all these encroachment permits were issued”. Asked how he compared the PN encroachments issue with the case of Planning Parliamentary Secretary Michael Falzon and the granting of €1.6 million for half a property in Valletta, Dr Zammit Lewis said he was not in a position to pass judgement at the time, adding that he preferred to wait for the NAO report on the matter.
Dr Bonnici said he was still awaiting the decision of the Attorney General on a separate NAO investigation which found irregularities by the General Workers’ Union in leasing out part of its headquarters in Valletta to ARMS Ltd, a government agency.
“The Attorney General is completely independent and I cannot intervene. However, I appeal for an expeditious decision,” Dr Bonnici said.
The NAO recommended that the Attorney General would start legal proceedings against the GWU. However, the government decided that, since there were “different legal interpretations” of whether the GWU could lease out part of its headquarters, the Attorney General should recommend what action the government could take.
ARMS Ltd is paying the GWU €62,000 a year for its lease.