Lands Authority boss is in business with Fortina shareholders

The CEO of the Lands Authority, which is negotiating a deal with the Fortina Hotel, is a business partner of the hotel’s shareholders. James Piscopo, a former CEO of the Labour Party and right-hand man of Prime Minster Joseph Muscat, holds shares in two private businesses together with members of the Zammit Tabona family, including the Fortina’s CEO Edward Zammit Tabona. The authority and the Fortina shareholders are negotiating a deal on the possible release of certain contractual clauses related to the acquisition of public land on the Tigné Seafront, where the Zammit Tabonas want to develop a multi-million-euro office block. The family stands to benefit handsomely if the deal is successfully concluded. In 2016, when he was already the CEO of Transport Malta, Mr Piscopo incorporated a company called Undecim Five Investments Ltd. Through Undecim, he holds shares in BBF Ltd, a company developing an old people’s home, and in Floors of Stone Company Ltd, which is involved in the importation and distribution of flooring materials. The other shareholders in these two companies include a number of top businessmen, among them Edward Zammit Tabona and other members of his family,...