Joseph Muscat will become the first ex-prime minister in the country's history to face criminal charges. Photo: Yara Nardi/Reuters
Malta's government has been thrown into chaos after several senior officials were accused of accepting bribes.
Former prime minister, current deputy prime minister and central bank governor are among the most senior officials. key figures will be accused of accepting bribes and money laundering as part of a multi-billion dollar hospital deal.
Politicians, lawyers, accountants and businessmen are also involved in the scandal.
Public trust in the tiny Mediterranean island's institutions is already low after years of allegations of corruption.
In 2017, Daphne Caruana Galizia, an investigative journalist, was killed in a car bomb attack – a murder for which several were accused of complicity. public figures.
The latest scandal in the EU's smallest member revolves around a controversial hospital privatization deal worth around 4 billion euros, which has been the subject of a lengthy investigation.
Joseph Muscat will become the first ex-Prime Minister in Malta's history and faces criminal charges including corruption in public office, accepting bribes, running a criminal enterprise and money laundering.
Mr Muscat resigned in 2019 after members of his entourage were involved in the murder of Caruana Galizia, denies the accusations.
“If they weren’t so serious, the accusations against me would be laughable,” he wrote on his Facebook page on Tuesday. “I will be pleased to dissect each of these accusations and show that they are built not only on fantasies, but also on lies.”
Officials implicated in the corruption scandal include (from left) former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearn, central bank governor Edward Scicluna, Muscat's former chief of staff Keith Schembri and former MP Konrad Mizzi. Photo: AFP via Getty Images
Chris Fearn, the current deputy prime minister who was widely tipped to be Malta's next European Commissioner, is also at the center of the scandal, accused of fraud and misappropriation of funds. He denies the charges.
Edward Scicluna, governor of the Central Bank of Malta and former finance minister, faces the same charges. He also denies his guilt.
Keith Schembri, Muscat's former chief of staff, faces charges of soliciting bribes, money laundering and abuse of office. He also denies the charges.
If found guilty, they face up to 18 years in prison.
The alleged scandal relates to a deal struck by Muscat's Labor government in 2015 to hand over control three public hospitals to the private firm Vitals Global Healthcare, despite the fact that it has no experience in the healthcare sector.
Less than two years later, it sold the concession to another company, Steward Health Care, without making any of the promised investments.
Last year, a court found evidence of fraud and voided the deal. A higher court upheld this decision and ruled that there was a “collusion” between the companies and government officials.
Mr Muscat resigned in 2019 after members of his circle were implicated in the 2017 murder of investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia. Photo: Darrin Zammit Lupi/Reuters “It just shows Daphne was right all along,” Corinne Vella, the sister of the slain journalist, told The Telegraph.
“She exposed the shady hospital deal almost 10 years ago, even before it was officially announced. All the damage could have been avoided if her warnings had been heeded. She questioned this at every turn.
“Muscat's accusation did not come as a complete surprise. But this is unprecedented. This is the first time in Malta that a former prime minister has been charged with high-level corruption.”
The accused are expected to appear in court in the coming days, at the start of what is likely to be a lengthy and complex trial trial.
The murder of Caruana Galizia, who had been investigating corruption for years, shocked Malta and focused EU attention on the rule of law and press freedom on the island.
Yorgen Fenech, a businessman accused of organizing murder, awaiting trial.
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