A vegetable vendor at the Pitkali market in Ta’ Qali yesterday filed a judicial protest against APS Bank after an account used by him and others was frozen, allegedly by order of the Agriculture Department.

In the protest, Paul Bonello said that, together with other vegetable vendors, he was told that he could only cash subsidy vouchers given by the department to farmers and vegetable vendors at APS Bank.

Last week, there was an issue on whether the market should open on August 15, a public holiday, and a number of vendors decided to open as usual, Mr Bonello said.

Subsequently, he tried to make some transactions using the vouchers but was told by a cashier at the bank that the account containing the money was frozen. Such freezing of an account was illegal, especially since the order to freeze it came from a third party, Mr Bonello said.

He added that the account had nothing to do with the bank, which was simply a client of the Agriculture Department.

The order to freeze the account allegedly came from the department, Mr Bonello said in his protest.

He called on the bank to immediately release the money.

The judicial protest was signed by lawyer Edward Gatt.