A judge has thrown out a claim for compensation filed by a man whose job at the Corradino prisons was terminated in 1999.

Aaron Haroun had filed a case against the Prime Minister, the Interior Minister and the Director of Prisons claiming he had been illegally sacked and had not been given the opportunity to defend himself from charges brought against him.

He had been employed as Assistant Manager at CCF in October 1996 on a two-year contract. In June 1998, he had asked to be exempted from attending a course for the prison’s middle management, claiming that the people who were delivering the course were less qualified than him.

The director had accused Mr Haroun of committing insubordination when he failed to attend the course and informed him that his contract was not being renewed.

Although he was not given a new contract, he remained in employment and continued to receive his salary.

In January 1999, the director complained about Mr Haroun’s behaviour and in July, he was formally charged with acting as a court translator while on duty, in breach of the prison’s regulations. 

There were also a number of other complaints about him and the way he went about doing his job.

His employment was officially terminated in October, 1999.

In June 2000, a disciplinary board had found in favour of Mr Haroun and had declared him not guilty of the charges.

Mr Justice Joseph R. Micallef heard Mr Haroun complain that he had been sacked summarily and had not being given the opportunity to defend himself from accusations made against him.

This, he insisted, defeated the spirit of natural justice.  He also complained that for most of the time he was employed there, he was not even given the basic tools to be able to work, such as an office. But the government’s officers against whom the case had been filed, argued back that Mr Haroun’s contract of employment had simply not been renewed, as this was their prerogative.

They said Mr Haroun had had his attention drawn to a number of irregularities and had been told several times that they were not happy with his performance.

The court found that Mr Haroun’s complaints were unfounded and that the decision not to renew the contract of employment was within the powers of the prison authorities. The judge therefore threw out the complaint.