Another mise-en-scene
John Dalli has decided to tell us, through the medium of Malta Today, that he sent Silvio Zammit a judicial letter in August. This would have been a month or more after OLAF informed him (on 11 July) that he was under investigation and why.
In that judicial letter, John Dalli and Malta Today claim, Zammit was told that he would be held accountable for any damage to Dalli’s career.
This is very different to warning him off and telling him to stop asking for money in his name.
Malta Today did not say that it has seen a copy of the judicial letter, which is normal journalistic practice (rather than taking the interviewee at his word), nor did they reproduce it in print or on line, as they did with that now infamous email which they got from John Dalli himself.
It was the same email that Dalli brandished during his interview with New Europe immediately after his resignation last Tuesday.
Perhaps some enterprising journalist will go to the Court Registry tomorrow and hunt down this judicial letter, as copies are kept on record physically but you will not find them on line. At least that way we will know whether it exists or not, and what exactly was said in it, given that Malta Today has not bothered to ask its master for the copy from his files.
You know how I like to say that the devil is invariably in the detail. Well, give that Dalli sent Zammit that judicial letter in August, and that he will have found out by then that Zammit had been going about taking his name in vain and demanding EUR60 million for Dalli to commit a corrupt act (something Dalli claims not to have known about) one assumes that they would since have been on extremely bad terms and that Dalli would be furious with Zammit and Zammit at war with Dalli.
So in that case, where exactly did Dalli get a copy of an email which Zammit had received (and presumably the rest of the string of correspondence) within less than an hour of his resignation? Did he ring up Zammit and say, hey, I know we’re not speaking at present, but can you forward to me any emails you might have that could help?
Like hell he did.
He had those emails already.
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Sitting ducks, you just won a koala.
Nice one, Daphne. Tell them how to go about it. in the meantime I am going to reread Excellent Cadavers as there is a paragraph which sums up this episode.
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20121021/opinion/Ghost-writers-Chinese-jars-and-Lolitas.441947
Perhaps she’ll tell us whether it’s OK to insist on the equidistant posturing now. Four bloody years of constant insipid resignation to Joseph’s amoral opportunism and not a decision in sight.
Let’s have something re Franco’s relativism about Dalli’s predicament instead.
Usually in mugshots, the accused looks straight into the camera and looks dejected.
Same as happened with the alleged hacking of e-mail. John Dalli had said that he went to the Commissioner of Police and we got to know from Bond+ last Thursday that no such report was filed.
I’m very curious to see if there really was a judicial letter.
If there was a judicial letter warning Mr. Zammit that he would be held responsible if Dalli’s reputation (what reputation?) was harmed, then shouldn’t Mr. Dalli now start legal action against Mr. Zammit? Me thinks that the OLAF report has damaged Mr. Dalli’s reputation.
If Zammit really did act without Dalli’s knowledge, does Dalli need to have already sent a judicial letter to Zammit to now take legal action against him?
A person you have known for many many years, and still meet regularly, does something that directly involves you and could be harmful to your career but does not tell you about it.
On discovering this fact, would you advise your lawyers to send this person, this good friend, a vague judicial letter?
Or would you pick up the phone and ask him to explain, and to desist, knowing full well that based upon your friendship such a person would certainly do so?
Sending a substanceless judicial letter to a friend, a person you meet up with regularly, a person who you doubtless communicate with regularly, is only a fall-back, “ghall ghajn in-nies”, a bit of insurance in case things go pear-shaped.
“Perhaps some enterprising journalist will go to the Court Registry tomorrow and hunt down this judicial letter, as copies are kept on record physically but you will not find them on line. At least that way we will know whether it exists or not, and what exactly was said in it, given that Malta Today has not bothered to ask its master for the copy from his files.”
Tell me what to do and I’ll do it.
[Daphne – Court/law reporters know perfectly well what to do.]
I’m convinced it exists, because it’s very purpose was to be discovered.
Ex commissioner, isthi jekk taf kif.
Please illuminate me. Mr. Dalli has claimed several times he knew nothing of what was going on behind his back, so why did he send the judicial letter to Silvio Zammit? Is it telepathy or some other sort of mystic thinking?
And another koala for Natalie.
The letter was sent in August. Dalli had already been summoned by OLAF.
I would like to know whether Silvio Zammit is from Qormi and lives in Sliema.
[Daphne – No, he’s Sliema born and bred.]
Carmel to be a bad guy there is no difference from Sliema Qormi jew Cospicua. Daphne keep up the good and investigative work, Time is proving you right
Silvio Zammit reminds me a lot of the notorious Englishman John Wilkes.
Same goofy Cheshire cat grin.
If William Hogarth was alive I am sure he would have lampooned Mr. Mqaret in an engraving also.
Or Fiorito, who bought himself a Smart under the fuzzy ‘expenses incurred in maintaining relations with voters’ only to discover he didn’t actually fit behind the steering wheel.
Undeterred, he got a BMW X5 instead, handing the Smart to his girlfriend. A little while later, the week an unexpected blizzard covered Rome he got himself a Jeep. ‘It was an emergency’ he said.
I saw this man, earlier this year, roughly a week before the council elections. I was on the pavement, walking up the street and he was walking down. Saw me coming and instead of letting me pass, to show what a courteous local council election candidate he is, he almost walked into me – and he saw me coming.
The pavement is the standard size, fits two people. I had to stop to let him pass as he was almost going to squeeze me to the wall.
What a savage, I thought.
I met up with some friends that same day and the topic of discussion was who was going to vote for whom. Somebody mentioned Silvio Zammit, Silvio Zammit. I said why? Ghax tajjeb, was the reply.
Tajjeb? Il-Maltin, nofshom imgienen.
I’m sad things had to end up as they did for Malta’s image in Europe – on the other hand I’m glad people found out, for themselves, who they voted for. Arrogant cheaters.
U mela. Ix-xemx minn filghodu turik.