Finance Minister Tonio Fenech has denied a claim by Labour MP Evarist Bartolo that George Farrugia, the person at the heart of the oil procurement scandal, handed him a gift worth over €5,000 soon after he became minister responsible for Enemalta.
Mr Fenech said he never received a gift, of any value, from Mr Farrugia, and if he was saying so, he was lying.
He also said he would take legal action against Mr Bartolo and Labour MP Chris Cardona, for repeating the claim.
Mr Bartolo made his claim at a press conference shortly after Mr Fenech himself held a press conference on the oil procurement scandal. (See separate story at http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20130221/local/pn-press-conf.458645)
Mr Bartolo said the minister's press conference was an attempt to divert the people's attention in a case which could reach the highest echelons of society.
But among the things which Mr Fenech had not spoken about was how, when he became minister responsible for Enemalta, somebody - George Farrugia - had gone to his home with a gift worth more than €5,000.
Oil trader George Farrugia is the person who has been granted a presidential pardon for information on the oil procurement scandal.
Mr Bartolo made his comments at a press conference half an hour after minister Fenech said PL financial administrator Joe Cordina was a director of Intershore Ltd, a fiduciary company which administered Aikon Ltd, the company used as a screen for George Farrugia to allegedly receive oil procurement commissions. The other directors were Dr Martin Fenech and Charles Scerri.
Mr Bartolo said that Mr Cordina was denying the minister's interpretation of the story.
He said Mr Cordina was never investigated by the police and he had nothing to do with Aikon, Mr Farrugia's company.
He said, however that Mr Cordina had asked to withdraw his election candidature and to suspend his position in the PL, without however implicating that he had any responsibility in the oil scandal.
MARTIN FENECH DENIAL
Labour MP Chris Cardona noted that former PN candidate Martin Fenech had said in a statement that neither he nor his colleagues in Intershore, the fiduciary company which had administered Aikon Ltd, could have known what had been going on. Charles Scerri, the other director of Interhsore, had also expressed surprise about what had happened.
Dr Cardona said the PL never received any donations from the people involved in the oil scandal.
Mr Bartolo said several of those who benefited from the oil scandal were donors of the PN.
He said that if one was to pin responsibility on people in fiduciary companies, then one could legitimately question the role of David Gonzi, the prime minister's son in the SIB Ltd case. He explained that SIB Ltd was one of several companies set by officials of the Salvatore Maugeri Foundation, who were subsequently investigated for money laundering, tax evasion and misappropriation of public funds in Italy. (Dr Gonzi always denied any connection and wrongdoing. He resigned form the company.)