Updated 1745 News Portal Briefing
Latest Update- News Portal Briefing
Times of Malta reports that access to a secluded bay at Fomm ir-Riħ has been restored after pictures of a metal gate blocking the path provoked widespread anger.
MaltaToday reports that Malta needs anti-mafia legislation modelled on foreign jurisdictions, the public inquiry into the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia has been told.
Newsbook reports that Minister for Tourism Clayton Bartolo and Parliamentary Secretary for Recreation Clifton Grima launched the Bars and Clubs COVID-19 Support Scheme, which will grant €2,700 to each bar
TVM reports that Elderly persons in the 80 to 84 age group and living at home will start receiving letters of appointment for the Covid-19 vaccination in the coming days, with dates, times, and location for the first and second dose of the vaccine.
Updated 1236 – Covid-19 Update
Health authorities reported 185 new Covid-19 cases, and 174 recoveries. Three more patients have died due to Covid-19, bringing the total number of fatalities to 264. There are now 2,695 active cases. These cases were identified from 3,280 swab tests.
Updated 1200pm – Malta ranks 14th globally on Covid-management
Timesofmalta.com reports that Malta has ranked 14th in a global index gauging how countries have performed in the coronavirus pandemic.
The index of 98 countries, compiled by Lowy Institute, an Australian think tank, was based on six key indicators. These were the following: confirmed cases, confirmed deaths, confirmed cases per million, confirmed deaths per million, confirmed cases as a proportion of tests and tests per thousand people.
Dalli’s son jail time is private matter – EU Commission
EU Commissioner Helena Dalli’s son being jailed over drug trafficking charges is ‘a private family matter,’ a spokesperson from the EU Commission said. The Malta Independent contacting the EU executive for comments after Jean-Luc Dalli, 25, the Commissioner’s son was caught handing over six ecstasy pills to another man outside a party venue at the old prisons in Corradino in September 2013.
This statement appears to indicate that the Commission saw no reason for Dalli to resign on the issue.
Updated 0850: Newspaper Review
The Times leads with the testimony of Matthew Caruana Galizia on Thursday who said that his mother was murdered while she was working on information that would expose serious financial difficulties faced by the Electrogas power station project.
The Independent follows the compilation of evidence against Yorgen Fenech during which inspector Keith Arnaud testified that messages found on the businessman’s phone suggested that he wanted to escape from Malta before the arrest took place.
In-Nazzjon quotes PN Leader Bernard Grech who said that Malta’s damaged reputation harms everyone. He accused the government of “sinking” the country’s name and called on the public to work together to restore Malta’s standing.
L-Orizzont carries an interview with Fr Marco Portelli, the Church delegate responsible for the care with separated persons. The priest said that separation, very often, leads to problems related to loneliness.
The Independent reports that the 25-year-old son of European Commissioner Helena Dalli was sentenced three months in jail for trafficking ecstasy at a party in 2013. The Magistrate acknowledged that the accused had helped the police with the investigation.
The Times quotes results from a survey conducted by the Chamber of SMEs which found that two in three small and medium businesses in Malta fear that they cannot survive into next year, even with government aid.
L-Orizzont reports that the parish priest and a parishioner have both been fined €58 for calling each other a liar in an argument. The Magistrate hearing the case ordered the pair to stay out of each other’s ways for a year.
In-Nazzjon says that a report by Transparency International placed Malta in a group of 22 countries with the worst performance in the latest Corruption Perception Index. The paper says that the perception of corruption has risen since Robert Abela became Prime Minister.
Morning Briefing
Daphne murder linked to signification revelations on power station project, son testifies
Matthew Caruana Galizia, son of assassinated journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, testified that his mother was killed as she was preparing to expose significant details on the failed power station projects.
Testifying in Court yesterday in the compilation of evidence against alleged murder mastermind Yorgen Fenech, Caruana Galizia revealed emails his mother had received in 2017 exposing the big financial problems faced by the Electrogas project.
He provided evidence to show that Fenech was the project’s key contact with the government and claimed that other shareholders feared him.
It was also revealed that Yorgen Fenech had been privy to the wording of a presidential pardon lined up for the middleman shortly before the businessman’s arrest.
Lead investigator Keith Arnaud testified that former PM Joseph Muscat set up a WhatsApp group with Fenech and Schembri just two days after the three alleged hitmen had been arrested in December 2017.
Retails see drop of 43% in sales
The pandemic has had a significant impact on sales over the past year, with an survey by the Chamber of SMEs, showing that last year slightly less than half of retailers saw sales decline by 50% compared to the previous year.
While the majority have said that they could withstand this situation for about a year, about a third said they had plans to keep their business going the way it was in 2020, while 69 percent expressed the wish that the a government wage supplement would continue to be provided for another year.
The survey showed that 43 percent of retailers saw sales decrease by half compared to the previous year, 21 percent saw sales decline by 30 percent or more, while 12 percent experienced a 20 percent decline.
The President of the House for Small and Medium Enterprises, Paul Abela, said the courage which business people are known for was apparent when 32 per cent responded that they had plans to keep their business going as they had done in 2020. 8 percent said they would have to lay off employees and 2 percent said they would have to shut down.
Covid-19 Update
The Health Department reported 208 new cases of coronavirus in the previous 24 hours, with 200 recovering. The number of active cases has reached 2,687. 3,565 swab tests were carried out in the past 24 hours.
Meanwhile, the number of deaths linked to Covid-19 has reached 261. 23,512 vaccine doses were administered until Wednesday, of which 2,095 were 2nd doses.
CDE News
