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Karl Schembri
Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi has turned down Transport Minister Jesmond Mugliett’s resignation, offered last week in the wake of revelations that he had directly intervened to retain two Transport Authority officials, even though they had both been convicted of corruption charges.
MaltaToday can reveal that the minister tendered his resignation on Monday, but government kept the issue under wraps as more revelations became public. Pressure upon Mugliett intensified when the authority’s chairman joined the chief executive officer in contradicting the minister’s claims that the decision to keep the two disgraced officers was shared by the authority’s board.
In a letter sent to The Times last Thursday, the transport authority chairman Joe Gerada denied Mugliett’s claims that the decision to keep Jason Buttigieg and Roderick Galea – who was a canvasser of the minister – was “discussed collectively” by the board and the minister.
Gerada’s letter was the last nail in the minister’s coffin as he clearly stated that “at no point was the board or chairman of the opinion that these people should be retained in ADT’s employment following the judgment by the court that found them guilty. Nor did they ever, even temporarily, reverse this decision.”
He added it was “definitely the policy of this board that any employee found guilty of corruption is to face the same consequences, namely termination of employment, as long as the law allows that.”
Confirming the statements made by outgoing Chief Executive Gianfranco Selvaggi, the chairman’s letter exposed Mugliett to harsh criticism from the Opposition which accused him of deceiving parliament.
Selvaggi had earlier said that he was instructed by the minister to reverse a decision to sack Buttigieg and Galea despite an appeals court sentence confirming their guilt in last year’s cash-for-licences scandal.
Shortly after the termination of their employment, Selvaggi was ordered by Mugliett to re-employ the two disgraced officials as they had filed for a presidential pardon, which was later turned down and they were eventually sacked again.
The two officials were sacked after MaltaToday revealed the bribery scandal last year involving virtually all of the driving examiners but one who received kickbacks for passing students from the driving test.
Despite Mugliett’s embarrassing exposure and contradicted statements by the very chairman and chief executive appointed by himself, the prime minister still turned down his offer of resignation although the reasons behind his decision remain unknown. |
