Matthew Vella
The Consumer and Competition Division is investigating an allegedly misleading web advert that is promoting land in Bahrija for sale.
The land was purchased by the controversial Eliza Company Ltd from the heirs of Salvatore Consoli-Palermo-Navarra, the Baron of Bahria, for Lm1,080 million (€2.5m).
It is now being advertised for sale at €30 million on a website, which bears the name of the real estate agent, Mika Bashir.
Contacted by MaltaToday, however, Bashir said she did not want to release any comment on the sale of over 1.5 million square metres of Bahrija land on the internet.
The same NGOs which protested against the attempted sale of the protected land back in 2005, reported the website to the consumer affairs division over misleading advertising.
While the land itself is protected, and cannot be developed, earlier this year landowner Norman Zammit – a former chairman of the Malta External Trade Corporation (METCO) appointed by Alfred Sant – lost an appeal against a court decision to repay a €1.9 million loan (Lm828,771) to Bank of Valletta.
Zammit claimed it was Eliza Company, the company in which he is a shareholder, that had been paying off the debt through property sales.
Eliza is also owned by Generoso Sammut, Emanuel, Joseph and Carmel Baldacchino, Ninu Cuschieri, George Cuschieri, and Anthony Galea.
According to the contract of sale between Eliza and the Bahria heirs, Bank of Valletta had forwarded Lm700,000 to the Eliza shareholders for the purchase of the land.

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