Update 1845
Employees within the public sector should be urged to work from home as part of efforts to slow down the spread of COVID-19, the Nationalist Party said on Saturday. Addressing a virtual press conference, PN MPs Clyde Puli and Claudette Buttigieg said the government should immediately ensure its employees are encouraged to work from home. This, Puli said, would help avoid having the country go into full lockdown as seen in other countries. “Public sector employees should be encouraged to work from home. The private sector should also be incentivised to allow employees to work remotely. “Looking ahead, the government should start looking at the necessary changes that need to be carried out to ensure once the pandemic is over, remote working continues,” Puli said. Times of Malta
Labour whip Glenn Bedingfield has claimed Nationalist MPs have requested favours from Yorgen Fenech by spending nights at the Hilton Hotel at Portomaso, for free. Bedingfield’s claim on Facebook was made in the wake of the self-suspension of the MFSA’s chief executive Joseph Cuschieri, who has been revealed to have travelled to Las Vegas with the Tumas magnate Yorgen Fenech, in May 2018. MaltaToday
Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne expressed his support for the Fgura local council’s last-ditch efforts to save a historic farmhouse from demolition after the relevant permit was confirmed on appeal. The local council held a press conference on Saturday to highlight that the Environment and Planning Review Tribunal’s decision earlier this week did not mean the end of the efforts, and in reaction, Fearne – whose constituency includes parts of Fgura –wrote on social media that he agreed “100%” with the council. Newsbook
Update 1244
For the second day running, the number of recoveries exceeded that of new cases. 100 new infections were reported in the past 24 hours, with 165 recovering.
This takes the tally of active Covid-19 cases down to 1825. The positive cases were identified from a record number of tests: 3,698.
Update 1200h
62nd Covid-19 Victim – An 80-year-old woman has died while suffering from COVID-19, becoming the 62nd virus patient to die in Malta. The elderly woman was being cared for at Mater Dei Hospital and died late on Friday evening, health authorities said when announcing her death. She was admitted to hospital on October 9 and tested positive for the virus four days later, on October 13. Times of Malta
Protest against Mizieb – Aħrax – A group of NGOs and activists have gathered outside Castille this morning to protest the handing over of Mizieb and Ahrax to hunting lobby FKNK. Wearing t-shirts emblazoned with the Spazji Miftuha logo, the young volunteers brought placards and a PA system to the event. MaltaToday
Cardinal-elect Mario Grech said that his nomination to become Cardinal shows that Pope Francis not only saw something in him but that he also believes in the Church of the Maltese islands. – Malta Independent
Nationalist Party MP Jason Azzopardi, a lawyer to the family of Daphne Caruana Galizia, insisted that a sitting member of Robert Abela’s cabinet was mentioned by Vincent Muscat “il-Koħħu” in connection to a very serious crime that preceded the murder of the blogger and journalist. Azzopardi, who was speaking on Saturday’s edition of Andrew Azzopardi on 103, did not provide names, but confirmed that the person concerned was a minister – not a parliamentary secretary – and that they were not a lawyer. Newsbook
Morning Briefing
Lombard Bank fined by FIAU
Lombard Bank has been fined €340,058 by the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit for breaching anti-money laundering obligations. The Agency said that there was no suspicion of money laundering at the bank, but that its business risk assessment did not provide a holistic understanding of the various risk factors that may arise out of the bank’s activities.
The FIAU also found that the Bank’s customer risk assessment procedures were not rigorous and comprehensive enough.
Lombard said it will appeal the decision and wanted to reassure all its stakeholders that it has always been, and remains, committed to preventing the use of its services for any form of illicit activity.
MFSA CEO self-suspends despite PM’s defence
MFSA CEO Joseph Cuschieri as well as the Head of the Authority’s Legal Department, Edwina Licari have reportedly self-suspended until a decision is taken by the Board. The latter has also resigned from the anti-money laundering body (FIAU)’s board.
In a statement, the MFSA said that “in keeping with the principles of good governance, it is hereby giving notice that the Chief Executive Officer, Joseph Cuschieri, has, earlier on today, advised that he is voluntarily suspending himself from his duties to allow the Board of Governors to carry out any verifications necessary in relation to events reported in the media in recent days”.
Meanwhile, Dr Christopher Buttigieg has been appointed as Acting CEO of the Authority.
Prime Minister Robert Abela had publicly defended MFSA CEO Joseph Cuschieri following revelations of a no-expense paid trip ta’ Las Vegas with Yorgen Fenech, suggesting that he saw no conflict of interest. However, the PM acknowledged that he needed to see the full picture, such as whether Cuschieri was aware of Fenech’s involvement in the Carauna Galizia murder.
Former AG testifies, defends inaction on Panama Papers
Former Attorney General Peter Grech argued that his role was to advised and not to investigate, when questioned on why he had not followed-up on a range of corruption claims following the Panama Papers leak.
Grech, who resigned in September, confirmed to public inquiry related to the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia thathe had warned police that seizing evidence from accountants Nexia BT in connection with a possible investigation was “drastic” and an invasion of privacy.
He also defended his position in advising the policy not to carry out a raid on Pilatus Bank the same night that allegations on Egrant emerged, arguing that he disagreed that investigations needed to be launched simply after a blog had been written.
On the advice he had given regarding the Electrogas project, Dr Grech told the public inquiry that his position was in line with normal practice in other countries, which sought to ensure that there were no anomalies in the project. Grech confirmed that in some of the meetings with the banks that provided loans for the project, Yorgen Fenech would be present.
Covid-19 Update
Malta registered a decline in active cases of coronavirus for the first time in four weeks with 76 new cases recovered being balanced out with 110 recoveries. The new cases were identified from 3,075 swab tests.
Malta now has 1,891 active cases. In the weekly briefing by Prof Charmaine Gauci, the Health Superintendent said that the largest number of new cases were related to family and work clusters, Gauci said. A total of 161 cases were from households while a further 57 came from workplaces. Fifteen cases were traced to from social gatherings while six were imported.
Another man passed away yesterday, taking the tally to 61.
CDE News
