Charles BuhagiarLabour MP Charles Buhagiar, who chairs the Building Industry Consultative Council, has employed its former chairman as an assistant, the Times of Malta is informed.
Martin Debono, an architect by profession and a former Labour candidate, has been employed directly by Mr Buhagiar without a call for applications.
He is being paid almost €27,000 a year for his services.
The BICC was founded under a Labour administration in 1997 by Mr Buhagiar, then minister responsible for public works. The first chairman he appointed was Mr Debono. Almost two decades later, the roles of the two have now been inversed.
While Mr Buhagiar is in the BICC’s driving seat as chairman, Mr Debono is back helping Mr Buhagiar on national capital projects. When asked whether Mr Debono had been given a contract by the BICC, a Social Dialogue Ministry spokesman said he had been engaged on a “position of trust” basis.
“Mr Debono was recruited as a consultant with the BICC to replace another consultant, John Ebejer, whose contract expired,” the spokesman said.
“Mr Debono assists Charles Buhagiar in his role as BICC executive chairman on national capital projects.”
Asked to specify what types of national projects the BICC was involved in, given that the council had a consultative and not an executive role, the spokesman replied: “At present, BICC is finalising an EU funded project for the creation of a website for building products that render buildings more resource efficient. BICC is currently preparing a new application for EU funds for the implementation of the skills card initiative.”
Mr Debono was a Sliema Labour councillor until 2011 when he resigned following his arraignment over misappropriation of council funds.
In 2014, together with a former PN councillor, Mr Debono was acquitted of misappropriating and damaging council laptops after a court found that the prosecution had failed to prove its case.