Judge Lino Farrugia Sacco makes it to The Sunday Times (London), but for the wrong reasons
The Sunday Times (London) today reports that officials of Malta’s Olympics Committee are prepared to sell tickets for the Olympic Games to individuals they do not know are undercover reporters, in a manner that is against the rules.
One of those officials is Judge Lino Farrugia Sacco, whose presence on that committee is in contravention of the code of ethics for judges and has been contested before the Commission for the Administration of Justice.
I imagined that the news would be all over Malta by now, but no.
The Sunday Times (London) reports:
Greece was not alone in being happy to allow its tickets to be sold abroad. The reporters also met Judge Lino Farrugia Sacco and Joseph Cassar, president and secretary general of the Maltese Olympic Committee.
The officials were tempted by a £60,000 offer for their Winter Games tickets. They told the reporters they would need to set up a European office and it would be fine to sell across the continent as long they left “a few tickets” for the Maltese people.
Sacco said: “Frankly, we are just interested in just in our needs, because we realise that if the person is willing to pay you that much money, that person wants to make a profit.”
This reference to Judge Farrugia Sacco and the Maltese Olympics Committee appears in the online edition, but not in the front-page story in its print edition sold at newsagents today.
Apparently, the iPad edition also has a 2.5 minute video clip of Judge Farrugia Sacco being covertly recorded. I don’t use an iPad, haven’t seen this, and can’t confirm it.
Perhaps President George Abela might wish to take time out to tell us what he thinks, after having told us that we shouldn’t publish photographs of members of the judiciary. The Chief Justice might also have an opinion, after having lashed out so spectacularly at The Times a few days ago for its “sensationalist” reporting about matters to do with magistrates.
I hope the President of the Republic won’t mind, but I feel compelled to illustrate this blog-post with a photograph of a magistrate and a judge.
Judge Lino Farrugia Sacco (the old man on the left) at Magistrate Consuelo Herrera's (black dress, dark hair, on right) birthday party
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http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/insight/article1062567.ece#next
Good stuff, Daphne. Deep shit time for the greedy bastards.This should (has to) play big.
I happen to know that the pront edition in Malta is actually printed in Malta.
Is there some censorship at play here?
The Commission for the Administration of Justice might as well not exist. It is toothless and unable/unwilling to live up to its name.
If I understand well, the President of the Republic should not be upset. That’s not a photograph of Lino Farrugia Sacco the Judge. It’s a photograph of Lino Farrugia Sacco the President of the Malta Olympics Committee. Right?
It is on the last column of page 9 of the print edition.
Perhaps the President of the Republic and the Chief Justice won’t mind me, thinking out loud, that this is criminal behaviour and their silence is pure omerta’.
According to the Judge this morning.
“We would never go against the rules of the IOC. It’s not worth it.”
Jesus.
The Sunday Times did a ‘Fergie’ on Farrugia Sacco and Cassar.
I will not comment on the possible fallout, implications and complications.
At this early stage I will limit myself to two words.
How naive.
How many other judges and magistrates have been brought before the Commission for the Administration of Justice besides Judge Lino Farrugia Sacco (IOC) and Magistrate Antonio Mizzi (basketball)?
Or is this “mhux fl’interess tal-poplu”?
The story is in The Times today. Farrugia Sacco did not sell the tickets because it wasn’t worth the trouble. Dan bis-serjeta?
Today’s The Times (Malta) has the story on the front page and on timesofmalta.com:
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20120618/local/no-wrongdoing-in-olympics-ticket-sting.424793
Mr Justice Farrugia Sacco is quoted as saying:
“We would never go against the rules of the International Olympic Committee ( IOC). It’s not worth it.”
So presumably they would go against the rules if it was “worth it”.
Well spotted, Daphne.
I understand that Dr David Farrugia Sacco is a candidate on the Labour ticket.
Perhaps his daddy is hoping that the Commission for the Administration of Justice will procrastinate long enough till after the next election.
P.S.Is the young woman on the extreme right of your photo Dr Lydia Abela, the President’s daughter-in-law and one of the head honchos in the PL/MLP?
The art of lace-making is still alive and kicking in Malta.
[Daphne – Yes, that’s Lydia Abela. Her father-in-law the president of the republic heads the Commission for the Administration of Justice, and her husband, his son, is also a Labour candidate – and a lawyer who appears before Judge Farrugia Sacco.]
I guess that it would be better for our President to keep his mouth shut.
Lately he seems to imitate the ex communist President of our northern neighbour who now wants to give advice on everything and to everyone.
Take those tits out for the boys!
[Daphne – Paul, I believe it’s actually “get ’em out for the lads”.]
George Abela was the lawyer for Farrugia Sacco and Mizzi before the Commission for the Administration of Justice, so we can presume that now President George Abela as chairman of the said commission will not act against his former clients.
Seems the only way Malta will make headlines in the Olympics is for being dirty.