Mr Justice Lino Farrugia Sacco is involved in the running of the International Committee for the Mediterranean Games (ICMG), this newspaper has learnt.
The judge has already been censured by the Commission for the Administration of Justice over his involvement in the Malta Olympic Committee. He only left this post last year after an impeachment motion was moved against him by former prime minister Lawrence Gonzi in 2012.
I am not going to confirm anything to you
An investigation carried out by The Sunday Times of Malta established that despite stepping down from the helm of the olympic committee last May, when an impeachment motion for his dismissal was being discussed by the judiciary’s watchdog, Mr Justice Farrugia Sacco contested and was elected to the executive committee of the ICMG until 2017.
Minutes of the ICMG general assembly meeting, held in Mersin, Turkey, last June, and seen by this newspaper, confirm this.
Mr Justice Farrugia Sacco also currently occupies the post of president of the disciplinary anti-doping commission of the same organisation.
The judiciary’s code of ethics precludes members of the Bench from holding “any office or post, even though of a temporary, voluntary or honorary nature, and may not perform any activity, which in the opinion of the commission may compromise or prejudice their position or their duties or functions”.
Two MOC officials who spoke to this newspaper confirmed that Mr Justice Farrugia Sacco contested last June’s ICMG election under his own steam and is not representing Malta.
When contacted, Mr Farrugia Sacco declined to comment.
“I am not going to confirm anything to you as I am not giving interviews to anyone,” he said.
Last month, after a full year of deliberations, the Commission for the Administration of Justice concluded that there was evidence of misbehaviour by the judge and recommended that Parliament continues hearing the motion on his dismissal. However, following legal advice sought by the government and the Speaker, it was ruled that the motion before Parliament was dead and the whole process for the judge’s impeachment had to start again from scratch.
According to the Speaker’s ruling, parliamentary procedures precluded a motion in the previous legislature to continue being discussed in a new one.
He also argued that the MP presenting the motion in 2012 (Lawrence Gonzi) was no longer a member of the House.
This ruling appeared to conflict with previous procedures established by a former Speaker, who stated that an impeachment motion could be passed on from one legislature to another.
Following this ruling, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat presented another motion which will now have to start being discussed by the commission.
This move was harshly criticised by the Nationalist Opposition, which accused the government of using procedures to ensure that Mr Justice Farrugia Sacco can retire before the commission and Parliament have the time to remove the judge from his position.
Mr Justice Farrugia Sacco is due to retire from the Bench in August, upon reaching his 65th birthday.