January: A resignation and a murder
2 January
A man drowned in an unsuccessful attempt to save his partner who had been washed out to sea by a freak wave in Gozo. It is understood that a 50-yearold Polish woman was swept out to sea while walking on the rocks in Qala, specifically the Simar area, at about 3.10pm. Her partner, 52, also from Poland, jumped into the sea to try and save her, a witness said.
5 January
The Office of the Prime Minister failed to answer questions sent by this newspaper asking, among other things, how much the PM’s extravagant New Year’s video had cost the Maltese taxpayer.
The video was criticised on many levels. It was criticised for being more of a pre-electoral propaganda piece than a New Year’s message, which is usually expected to be about unity, respect and tolerance. In the 20minute long clip, the PM boasts about his government’s achievements, including the scheme for first-time buyers, lower income tax, lower energy tariffs and free childcare.
Johana Boni was riding a Kawasaki ER6N, died on impact in Labour Avenue in Naxxar, while the truck driver, a Mellieħa man aged 52, was taken to hospital suffering from shock. The bike ended up under the truck. The victim’s boyfriend wrote a heartwrenching post on Facebook.
9 January
Former Police Commissioner Ray Zammit refused to face the press following his latest controversy, in which it was revealed that he obtained three government plots for just €20,000.
Journalists who attended an event marking the Local Enforcement System Agency’s first 100 days were promised that Mr Zammit would speak to them after a sit-down press conference, only to find out that they had been lied to and that the LESA head would not show up.
16 January
In a speech to the Malta Chamber of Commerce, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said that various models have to be looked at when it comes to Air Malta, including “legacy and low-cost models.”
Asked whether the possibility of Air Malta becoming a low-cost carrier was being considered, Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis said this option is not on the cards. 2016 saw a number of developments with the Air Malta strategic partner saga, but discussions appeared to have stalled somewhat.
A car bomb explosion killed 55year-old Martin Cachia from Marsascala. Addressing a press conference, Police Superintendent Silvio Valletta explained that the police were still working to establish the dynamics of the case. He said that the main reason the police couldn’t yet absolutely ascertain that the explosion was a case of murder was because the bomb had been inside the car when it went off.
18 January
A protest by the far-right Patrijotti Maltin fringe group in front of the Msida church against the use of that same space by Muslims to pray on Fridays degenerated into rowdy shouting apart from having ignited a controversy that does not seem justified. Prior to the meeting, ham
sandwiches were distributed. This was understood to be a reference to allegations that schoolchildren at St Paul’s Bay have been told not to take ham sandwiches with them to school so as not to offend their Muslim colleagues. Education Minister Evarist Bartolo vehemently denied this and said there is no truth to these claims.
19 January
The Public Accounts Committee adjourned sine die on the oil procurement case until the constitutional cases that a few of the witnesses had initiated conclude. The cases in question regard witnesses, such as Tancred Tabone and Frank Sammut, who had not appeared before the Committee due to ongoing court cases. Jason Azzopardi, leading the PAC session, said the Committee had two choices before it, either to declare the investigation closed, or for the committee to postpone sine die. Both sides agreed to the latter.
Just before the 2013 general election, claims emerged that alleged rogue oil trader George Farrugia was involved in insider trading in fuel supplies to Enemalta, the state power station. He was granted a Presidential pardon in return for turning state witness. Allegations were also made against former Minister Austin Gatt, which were never proven.
21 January
Michael Falzon resigned his post as Parliamentary Secretary for Planning following the publication of a damning NAO report into the Gaffarena expropriation deal. The report found that Dr Falzon and other government officials failed to safeguard the government’s interest in the controversial deal.
Government MP Deborah Schembri replaced him as Parliamentary Secretary for Planning. The Prime Minister said he had given instructions to suspend the transfer of government-owned land by sale or rent to Marco Gaffarena by initiating a court case, the well-known businessman at the centre of the scandal. The government paid €1.65 million for part ownership of a Valletta property that Mark Gaffarena bought for a fraction of the price just weeks earlier. He made a profit of €685,000 in less than two months, apart from acquiring parcels of land in exchange equivalent to the size of more than 10 football pitches. It was reported that the total value of the expropriation deal stood €3.4 million.
28 January
An agreement between the Department of Health, the Ministry for Energy and Health and the University of Malta was signed, establishing the grounds upon which the Barts Medical School and the UoM’s Medical School will maintain and strengthen their educational systems.
31 January
Months of speculation came to an end when the Office of the Prime Minister announced that Dr Toni Abela had been nominated as a member of the European Court of Auditors. At the time, he was Deputy Leader of the Labour Party. Dr Abela’s nomination ultimately did not work out due to a number of controversies that came back to haunt him.