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Karl Schembri
The departure of former Malta Transport Authority Chief Executive Mario Falzon from the top job at the authority remains clouded in mystery with both the transport minister and the governing board refusing to state the exact reasons behind it.
In what is now turning into a consistent government policy of keeping reasons behind resignations and dismissals of public officials secret, Falzon was unceremoniously ousted from the authority last week without clear explanations.
MaltaToday had asked Transport Minister Jesmond Mugliett’s spokesman last Wednesday whether he could confirm that the chief executive was on forced leave pending internal investigations regarding an irregular promotion to a secretary he was allegedly responsible for.
The minister’s spokesman downplayed the matter, saying the transport authority investigation was still under way and that it was only a minor issue, even though he did confirm that Falzon was on leave. Questions sent officially to the minister remained unanswered.
On Friday, however, The Times reported Mugliett saying that Falzon was ousted by the Transport Authority board.
The minister was quoted as saying that the authority’s board had terminated Falzon’s contract because of a promotions exercise it disagreed with, without giving further details.
But the authority is now chastising The Times for “misrepresenting” Falzon’s departure by using the headline “Transport Authority Chief Executive ousted”.
“In reality, it was nothing of the kind,” the authority said in a press statement that turns out to be even more generic than the minister’s. “The board of the Transport Authority and Mario Falzon resolved to go their separate ways after it became clear that differences in policy and implementation were irreconcilable.”
Contacted by MaltaToday, Falzon said he left the authority “for personal reasons”. He declined to comment further.
Falzon’s departure follows the unexplained removal of former authority Chairman Charles Demicoli last May, when Mugliett became responsible for roads and transport after Gonzi’s Cabinet reshuffle.
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