Rebuked retired judge Lino Farrugia Sacco to chair Lands Authority

Judge Lino Farrugia Sacco, who in 2014 escaped impeachment due to his retirement from the Bench, will chair the new Lands Authority, expected to be launched officially later this week, the Times of Malta is informed. Planning Parliamentary Secretary Deborah Schembri also appointed Labour general election candidate Carlo Mifsud as the new CEO, government sources said. The new regulator is the result of the Gaffarena scandal, involving the transfer of a property in Valletta which led to the resignation of parliamentary secretary Michael Falzon last year. After she had succeeded Dr Falzon, Dr Schembri promised a revamp of the Land Department through the establishment of an ‘autonomous’ new authority that would work at arm’s length from the government. The Bill drafted by the government to set up the new regulator was immediately criticised on the grounds that its board lacked effective independence, since in its majority, it would be directly appointed by the government. The government also insisted it would choose the CEO, though after a public call. Judge Farrugia Sacco was twice recommended for impeachment by the judiciary watchdog – the Commission for the Administration of...