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Safeguard politicians from intrusions in private, sexual lives - Deborah Schembri

February 11, 2017, 12:46 am
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Laws should also be enacted to safeguard politicians from uncalled-for intrusions into their private and sexual lives, Parliamentary Secretary Deborah Schembri said today. Much of what is written about politicians is meant to catch the attention of the masses or provide for their distraction from important issues, providing fodder for the 8pm news, Dr Schembri wrote in today's Times of Malta Talking Point.  "But there's much at stake, and realising it quickly and doing something about it is very much in the public interest... The time is ripe for this country to enter into a serious discussion about this matter." Her comments come in the wake of a political and legal wrangle between Daphne Caruana Galizia and Economy Minister Chris Cardona after the blogger claimed he had visited a brothel in Germany, an allegation he rejects.  Dr Schembri, who steered the pro-divorce campaign before she became an MP said any past politicians who achieved much for their countries and the world would not have been capable of holding office if one had subjected their intimate lives to the scrutiny politicians are subjected to today. "All it takes to get the country's hormone levels up a notch is...
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Almost €70,000 raised for Daphne Caruana Galizia

February 10, 2017, 10:59 pm
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Updated 12.05pm with Żminijietna PR Around €70,000 were raised in 36 hours in a crowdfunding initiative to support Daphne Caruana in the wake of a controversial garnishee order instituted by Economy Minister Chris Cardona following the blogger's brothel claims. The figure raised clearly surpasses the €47,460 garnishee order placed on her assets for the duration of proceedings in connection with two libel suits filed by Dr Cardona and his EU presidency policy officer, Joseph Gerada. The two felt aggrieved after Ms Caruana Galizia alleged they had visited a brothel while on official duty in Germany. Both men deny the claims. Though the garnishee order is perfectly legal, it prompted harsh criticism from editors, political parties, the European Federation of Journalists and the Institute of Maltese Journalists who deemed the measure too excessive and an affront to the freedom of the press. In a post last night, Ms Caruana Galizia said $59,000 poured in from 1,225 people through a crowdfunding site, with individual contributions ranging from $3 to $1,000. "Other people gave their donations in person. One man brought €5,000. Another two brought €1,000 each; yet another brought €2,000.
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Dwejra Unesco status can help Maltese reconnect with nature

February 11, 2017, 7:07 am
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A committee of experts has been allocated some €200,000 to carry out studies for Dwejra to be considered a UN world heritage site. Photo: Anthony Grech

The Azure Window and the surrounding area known as Id-Dwejra could help the Maltese reconnect with nature, something they sorely need to do, according to the head of a team trying to gain Unesco world heritage recognition for the site. “A main objective of this recognition is improving the relationship between man and the environment. This is increasingly important for Malta and the Maltese, as the island is being engulfed in concrete blocks. We need to remind man that he is a part of nature,” Henry Frendo said. Prof. Frendo is heading a committee of experts who have been allocated some €200,000 to carry out studies on Dwejra to be considered a world heritage site by the UN’s international agency on education, science and culture. The other members of the team are Catherine Tabone, Claudio Maria Marciano Di Scala, Frank Zammit, Nathaniel Cutajar, Edward Gilson and Yanica Sammut. The initiative was launched earlier this week by Environment Minister José Herrera, who said the Majjistral Park should also be treated as a national geo-park. The team has three years to come up with the necessary studies to apply to the UN’s agency for recognition, and strict criteria will have to be...
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Nine unruly students moved from Ħamrun secondary as school rejects ‘ghetto’ label

February 12, 2017, 12:45 am
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Nine students from the Ħamrun secondary school have been moved to specialised support programmes as the education authorities react to teachers’ concerns over unruly behaviour. Maria McNamara, director general for education, said the nine children will be given dedicated support to help them deal with behavioural issues. But she insisted this was not a reflection of the vast majority of students who attended the school, which forms part of the San Ġorġ Preca college. The school was last week described as a “ghetto” by the Malta Union of Teachers, a label rejected by headmistress Doriann Portanier Mifsud. In an interview with The Sunday Times of Malta, she said the use of the word ‘ghetto’ was unfair on the vast majority of students, who went about their daily routines with little or no problems. “We do have students with challenging behaviour, but they are few and no different from the experiences I have had in other schools in different parts of Malta,” Ms Portanier Mifsud said. The Ħamrun school hosts some 360 children and caters for students between Form 3 and Form 5. The recent outburst by the MUT follows the case of a female student last November who alleged sexual abuse by...
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New hope for Scottish mum as Maltese father is arrested in drug bust

February 11, 2017, 11:16 pm
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A Scottish mum who is battling her former partner over their son is hoping to get full custody after the father was arrested in a drug bust. The Daily Record reported today that Daniel Borg Olivier, 39, who is battling Janice Dunn over son, was arrested following a cocaine and guns seizure in Malta. The courts have already ruled that the boy, five, has to remain with the father until the case is resolved. The newspaper reported that Mr Borg Olivier was arrested by undercover police officers while driving with his friend Ivan Xuereb, 48. Mr Xuereb, the newspaper said, was found carrying around £12,000 worth of cocaine and a loaded gun and 49 rounds of ammunition were later found at his house. It said he appeared in court last week where he refused to test. The mother has since made a fresh application for the son's custody. She had spent nine months living in a budget hotel in Malta after being ordered back there in 2015 by the European Court of Justice over claims she had abducted her son. She had to leave Frazer behind in June last year and return home to Barrhead, Renfrewshire, after running out of money.
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Shanghai Electric making €41,000 in profits every day

February 11, 2017, 10:20 pm
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The BWSC power plant in Delimara was sold by the government to Shanghai Electric in order to be able to reduce Enemalta’s long-term debts. Photos: Chris Sant Fournier

Updated with government statement at 10.40am Shanghai Electric is making €41,000 in profits every day selling energy back to Enemalta from the BWSC power plant it bought from the State electricity corporation in 2014. Meanwhile, Enemalta is still registering losses, despite buying much of its energy at a low price through the interconnector link with Sicily. D3 [Delimara 3] Generation Limited, the company that was formed by Shanghai Electric to operate what was at the time Enemalta’s newest power plant, received €27 million from the corporation during its first 16 months of operation, according to its published, audited accounts. From this, it made a profit of €20 million. The accounts also show that the new Chinese owners have kept costs down at the state-of-the-art plant, where they employ just five officials. Audit experts who analysed the D3 accounts told this newspaper that the Chinese “have got a very good deal from the government”. “If the stream of payments from Enemalta to the Chinese remains at current levels, it will mean that the Chinese will recover their investment in just seven years, with a return of 14 per cent per annum,” they said. The BWSC plant was...
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Man murdered in Marsa

February 11, 2017, 11:46 pm
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Updated with victim's name at 10.20am A man was murdered in Marsa this morning. Sources said the victim, 25-year-old Sylvester Farrugia of Żurrieq, is known to the police. He was gunned down around 5am. The police said they were informed there was the body of a man near a stolen car with stolen registration plates in Triq Simpson early this morning. Although they were still investigating what could have led to the death, it appeared that the victim had been shot in the back. The back window of his vehicle was shattered. An inquiry is being held. This is the second murder this year. A man was killed after a car exploded in Marsa on January 29.
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Tritons start journey to Florence for restoration

February 12, 2017, 3:14 am
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The Tritons, which have been gracing the entrance to Valletta for the past 58 years, left Malta today on a 1,300 journey to Florence for restoration. The Tritons, which have been gracing the entrance to Valletta for the past 58 years, left Malta today on a 1,300 journey to Florence for restoration. The Tritons and the plate above them, which together weigh more than 14 tons, were on Thursday hoisted in two trailers in preparation for their voyage on the Eurocargo Venezia, which will take them to Livorno. From there, they will continue with their journey on land to arrive at the Fonderia Artistica Ferdinando Marinelli on Wednesday. The restoration works should start immediately. They will first be cleaned from the concrete that had been used to anchor them to the fountain just outside City Gate and the proper restoration work on the cracks in the bronze will then start. The bronze parts will be cleaned both from the inside and the outside before the figures are stuck back together. A steel structure is to be built inside each figure to take on the weight of the plate and avoid the damage from being repeated. They will then be covered in microcrystalline wax for protection and to...
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Ħamrun secondary school is no ghetto, headmistress insists

February 12, 2017, 12:45 am
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In July 2015, Ms Portanier Mifsud started a programme to rehabilitate the school, including its library.

The Ħamrun secondary school has been in the news for the wrong reasons, but its head, Doriann Portanier Mifsud, tells Kurt Sansone there is a brighter side to the bleak picture that has been painted. The colourful corridors at the Ħamrun secondary school are lit up by the afternoon sun shining through the glass facade in the foyer. As I step inside my childhood school, it feels warmer and brighter than how I left it 25 years ago, when it was one of a handful of boys’ junior lyceums. Only last week, the school was described by the Malta Union of Teachers as a “ghetto school” following complaints on the behaviour of certain students. The union even threatened a strike. The development came on the back of another controversy last year. A female student alleged abuse by a teacher and several male students. The case remains under police investigation, with no charges in court yet. The school, part of San Ġorġ Preca College, houses some 360 students from Form 3 to Form 5, but the complement is expected to almost double in the years ahead. Co-education of boys and girls started this scholastic year at Form 3 level. When I arrive, it is just after 2.30pm, and the students have already...
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Pink explores how love goes in blended families

February 11, 2017, 4:01 am
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Love permeates tomorrow’s issue of Pink, featuring interviews with columnist Kristina Chetcuti and architect Marielouise Caruana Galea about their blended families. Pink will go into what it takes to trust and take the plunge into a new relationship after a marriage breaks down, how to go about parenting their partner’s kids and having the full house they always wanted. In open, introspective and humorous interviews, the two women talk about both the joys and the complications of joining family forces, shared custody and getting together, living with the leader of a political party, refurbishing the house to accommodate all –  including the dog, the fine art of compromise, having yet another child, quality time alone… and, most importantly, taking it nice and slow. In the run-up to Valentine’s Day, Malta’s leading women’s magazine, out with tomorrow’s Sunday Times of Malta , looks into the ‘myth’ of everlasting love and exciting solo travel plans for singletons. And to keep up the spirit, Pink has launched a Facebook competition whereby readers can win a one-night stay in a deluxe room, including breakfast for two, at the Hilton Malta, as well as a set of Urbanista Seattle...
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Anti-money-laundering agency workers still clueless about new head

February 12, 2017, 1:44 am
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Employees of Malta’s anti-money-laundering agency, which investigated the country’s connection to the Panama Papers, are still in the dark about who will be taking over as their new head following the departure of Manfred Galdes last August. Despite an announcement by Finance Minister Edward Scicluna more than three weeks ago that the new person to head the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) had been chosen, no one has been told who it is, one employee said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. Prof. Scicluna had simply said that the individual was “highly qualified and experienced”, without giving a name. Questions and several reminders sent over the past month to Attorney General Peter Grech, who chairs the agency’s board of governors, which chooses the director, have been ignored. The other representatives on the board are appointed by the Central Bank Governor, the chairman of the Malta Financial Services Authority and the Police Commissioner. Despite the mystery surrounding the agency’s new head, it appears to be business as usual for the FIAU’s 30 or so employees. “With or without the new head, work here has continued as normal, so it really does not make any...
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Photos of the week - Times of Malta

February 10, 2017, 4:17 pm
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Times of Malta presents a selection of its photographers' choice of their best photos over the past days.
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Opposition resorting to provocation because it has run out of ideas - PM

February 12, 2017, 3:43 am
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Prime Minister Joseph Muscat this morning called for unity warning that the Opposition was resorting to provocation in a bid to create division and incite hatred as “it has run out of ideas... it has nothing to offer". “We should respond by extending the hand of friendship,” Dr Muscat said. The Prime Minister made this appeal during a political activity at the Paola Labour party club. He did not refer to the controversy surrounding Economy Minister Chris Cardona, who filed for a €47,000 precautionary order to be issued against Daphne Caruana Galizia (for allegations that he visited a brothel while on official duty in Germany) but said the Opposition was only effective to flag problems. Ultimately people trusted the Labour government to solve them. “Their only hope is that one of us would fall for their provocation,” Dr Muscat added. In his address the Prime Minister lauded his government’s track record saying “nothing was impossible” for the Labour Party. In his address the Prime Minister lauded his government’s track record saying “nothing was impossible” for the Labour Party. “We are punching above our weight when compared with other Mediterranean islands. This applies for the...
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PN to present bill for removal of precautionary warrants against journalists

February 12, 2017, 3:26 am
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The Opposition is tomorrow presenting a bill in Parliament calling for the removal of precautionary warrants against journalists, PN leader Simon Busuttil said. Addressing a big crowd in Sliema, Dr Busuttil spoke on the Chris Cardona brothel scandal saying the Economy Minister had taken an “extreme and savage measure” by requesting the courts to issue precautionary warrants against Daphne Caruana Galizia. Dr Cardona’s actions were a clear threat to free speech, which was unacceptable in a democracy, Dr Busuttil said. He said such an extreme action sent a clear message to all government critics in a bid to scare them. He said if the Prime Minister truly believed in free speech, he would give his blessing to the Opposition bill. Dr Busuttil also spoke on the Panama Papers scandal saying the two people closest to the Prime Minister were clients of a criminal organisation. Referring to the news that Mossack Fonseca’s owners were charged with running what prosecutors dubbed a criminal organisation, Dr Busuttil said that Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri were clients of that very firm. The two men used Mossack Fonseca to set up secret companies in Panama. Dr Busuttil said the owner of a...
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Watch: No one-way traffic for this Sunday driver in Attard

February 12, 2017, 10:37 am
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Attard's Triq iż-Żagħfran has been a one-way road since time immemorial, but one driver this morning either did not know or did not care about the street's traffic rules.  In dash cam footage captured this morning and sent to the Times of Malta, a driver in a white car can be seen driving down the Attard road, against the flow of traffic. WATCH: Crazy driving worthy of a Hollywood stunt Despite having plenty of room to pull over and turn around, the errant driver continues to nonchalantly head down the road, seemingly nonplussed by the road hazard they pose.  As dash cams have become more common, video footage of drivers disregarding traffic rules, running red lights and driving recklessly have become increasingly common. Statistics released late last month revealed that traffic accidents caused 22 deaths last year.  Have you got video worth sharing? Get in touch at mynews@timesofmalta.com
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Pharmacists in ‘conscientious objection’ to morning-after pill

February 12, 2017, 5:42 am
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A number of individual pharmacists are refusing to dispense the morning-after pill on moral grounds, it has emerged, even though the emergency contraceptive is stocked in the pharmacies where they work. The pharmacists are either directing customers to other pharmacies where they will not have a problem purchasing the pill or else telling them to return to the same pharmacy another time when another “sympathetic” pharmacist will be on duty. READ: App to promote pharmacies opposed to pill Malta Chamber of Pharmacists president Mary Ann Sant Fournier told The Sunday Times of Malta that like other independent healthcare professionals, pharmacists “have a right to conscientious objection”. “It is ethical practice to indicate, even within the same pharmacy, which pharmacist would dispense the emergency contraception preparation, thus ensuring access,” Ms Sant Fournier said. Following the introduction of the emergency contraceptive last year and the decision by the Medicines Authority to make it available over the counter, pharmacists were handed a set of guidelines to abide by when handing out the contraceptive. The guidelines, which outline the dispensing methods and were made...
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Evarist Bartolo ‘knew about FTS cheques’

February 12, 2017, 7:30 am
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Education Minister Evarist Bartolo was aware that his person of trust now under investigation for alleged corruption was delivering cheques to Gozo school contractors by hand, even before he was informed about it, this newspaper can reveal. Mr Bartolo told newly appointed Foundation for Tomorrow’s Schools CEO Philip Rizzo of this dubious practice, which goes against normal procedure, on the very first day of the latter’s job, April 13, 2016. “Only five hours into his first day as the new FTS CEO, the minister warned Mr Rizzo, surprisingly, that Edward Caruana might say he takes cheques to Gozo to make life easier for Gozitan contractors,” a source said. READ: Canvasser hand-delivered €9m in cheques Last December, however, Mr Bartolo issued a statement saying it was Mr Rizzo who had informed him, on April 16, that Mr Caruana “was insisting on giving cheques to contractors in person”. “To this I replied: ‘Treat him like any normal employee. Fair but firm. No one outside good governance regulations... let us address issues effectively through structures,” Mr Bartolo said. Yesterday, sources close to the FTS told this newspaper that throughout his first month in office, Mr Rizzo had...
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Pink explores how love goes in blended families

February 11, 2017, 4:01 am
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Love permeates tomorrow’s issue of Pink, featuring interviews with columnist Kristina Chetcuti and architect Marielouise Caruana Galea about their blended families. Pink will go into what it takes to trust and take the plunge into a new relationship after a marriage breaks down, how to go about parenting their partner’s kids and having the full house they always wanted. In open, introspective and humorous interviews, the two women talk about both the joys and the complications of joining family forces, shared custody and getting together, living with the leader of a political party, refurbishing the house to accommodate all –  including the dog, the fine art of compromise, having yet another child, quality time alone… and, most importantly, taking it nice and slow. In the run-up to Valentine’s Day, Malta’s leading women’s magazine, out with tomorrow’s Sunday Times of Malta , looks into the ‘myth’ of everlasting love and exciting solo travel plans for singletons. And to keep up the spirit, Pink has launched a Facebook competition whereby readers can win a one-night stay in a deluxe room, including breakfast for two, at the Hilton Malta, as well as a set of Urbanista Seattle...
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Disability sector pioneer Marcel Pisani dies aged 66

February 12, 2017, 10:11 am
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Marcel Pisani, who worked tirelessly to provide people living with a disability and their carers with the necessary support structures, died yesterday aged 66.  Mr Pisani was one of the co-founders of Dar il-Kaptan, which provides respite services for people living with a disability and ensures primary carers can have some time off, as well as Aġenzija Sapport's first CEO. In a Facebook post announcing his passing, Dar il-Kaptan mourned Mr Pisani as "a man with a golden heart who worked for the disabled until his last breath." Parliamentary secretary Justyne Caruana said Mr Pisani had distinguished himself with his hard work in the disability sector and offered his relatives her condolences. She urged others to follow his example and work towards fostering solidarity.  In a statement, the Nationalist Party also honoured Mr Pisani's memory, saying he was instrumental in ensuring people living with a disability were given the attention they merited in Maltese society.   
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Nationalist MP Bezzina withdraws ODZ bid after press report

February 12, 2017, 10:55 pm
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Opposition MP Toni Bezzina was yesterday forced to withdraw a planning application outside a development zone in Rabat, in the wake of the backlash caused by a story published that same day in Labour’s newspaper Kullħadd. Located a short distance away from Mdina at Telgħet is-Saqqajja, the plot of land consisted of an almond grove with a number of derelict World War II structures. The application which had not been filed by the Agriculture and Fisheries Shadow minister himself but by his wife, comprised the restoration of wartime living quarters and an observation room. The controversy erupted after it transpired that the development would also include a three-bedroom dwelling complete with a swimming pool, garages and driveway. This part of the project had already prompted objections from the Environment and Resources Authority, as well as heritage NGO Din l-Art Ħelwa. However, the application which had been submitted last November only came to the fore of the political agenda yesterday with the PL’s Sunday paper accusing the PN MP of planning to build an “ODZ villa”. The story was especially damning in the wake of the PN’s recent environment policy, co-authored by Mr Bezzina,...
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