Investments minister Austin Gatt knew since last October that Danish media had reported alleged cases of bribery committed by Burmeister & Wain Scandinavian Contractor (BWSC) who this summer was awarded the controversial contract for the €200 million Delimara power station extension.
Gatt – who repeatedly defended Enemalta’s choice of awarding the contract to BWSC notwithstanding the series of alleged irregularities pointed out by the Opposition and other competing consortia for the project – was in fact confronted with copies of the damning media reports by PN backbenchers in a parliamentary group.
During that meeting that discussed the Opposition’s motion on the controversial contract, one MP reportedly asked Gatt if he knew about the allegations and showed him a copy of the newspaper reports. For that, Gatt reportedly brushed off the reports even when it was pointed out to him that the newspaper Borsen was Denmark’s equivalent of the Financial Times.
During that same meeting, Gatt reportedly stressed that he saw nothing “odd or exorbitant” in the €4 commission the local BWSC representatives were to receive for the €200 million contract.
The revelation sheds light on the fact that Gatt already knew about the allegations in the Danish media about BWSC and waited only until this weekend to contact the Scandinavian company to come clean and provide replies about the allegations.
When confronted with questions, Gatt told MaltaToday that he “does not discuss the proceedings of the parliamentary group outside the parliamentary group.”
In retaliation to Labour leader Joseph Muscat and Evarist Bartolo’s visit to the Auditor General last Friday, to present news reports that allege corruption by BWSC and its mother company Mitsui of Japan, Gatt made immediate contact with the Danes seeking clarifications, including a video conference held yesterday morning between the minister’s chief-of-staff Emanuel Delia and BWSC CEO Soren Barkholt.
Hours after Joseph Muscat visited the Auditor General, the Danes swiftly wrote back to the minister denying the allegations, forwarding an uncertified translation of a 2004 letter from the Hillerod district’s Police Commissioner that in a few words “dropped” the investigations because there was “no probable cause that a criminal offence, which could be pursued by the public authorities, has been committed.”
The letter however does not indicate which case the Danish police were investigating, nor the time the alleged crime took place or the country the crime took place in.
According to Danish sources, the investigation in question referred to media reports in 2003, concerning an allegation of a US$90,000 bribery by CEO Soren Barkholt to a company agent in the Philippines in 1999, and who in turn forwarded a large part of that sum to the chairman of the public authority responsible for the adjudication of a public tender.
However it transpires that when the alleged crime took place in 1999, Danish law did not cover the prosecution of crimes committed outside Denmark by Danish companies.
The matter was so serious that it warranted a review by the OECD working group that scrutinised the country’s enforcement of the OECD Convention on Combating the Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions. Its main recommendations were that Denmark amend the law to increase the penalties for foreign bribery.
Since then the Danish government has changed its laws on bribery, and should any irregularities be proven in the Malta contract, it would now become a criminal offence to be investigated by the Danish police.
It is to be noted that BWSC did not react to the Opposition leader’s parliamentary motion, nor to the initial investigation by the Auditor General on the award of the Delimara contract.
However it immediately reacted to Joseph Muscat’s move to ask the Auditor General to investigate the bribery reports.
According to Danish sources, BWSC officials know that the news of Joseph Muscat raising the issue has once again raised the eyebrows of the Danish police.
In correspondence exchanged yesterday, the investments ministry said that BWSC officials will be in Malta tomorrow to meet the Auditor General. Ministry officials and have also requested a meeting with Joseph Muscat.
Any comments?
If you wish your comments to be published in our Letters pages please click button below. Please write a contact number and a postal address where you may be contacted.
Search:
MALTATODAY
BUSINESSTODAY
Download MaltaToday Sunday issue front page in pdf file format
All the interviews from Reporter on MaltaToday's YouTube channel.
