When was the government planning to tell us about this? And what is the extent of blacklisted Shiv Nair’s involvement?
On 30-31 October, there is an ‘oil and gas’ summit at a spa hotel in Rome. It is called the ‘Italy and Malta Oil and Gas Summit 2013’, but Italy plays no part in it. The only official endorsements come from “the Ministry for Energy and the Conservation of Water of Malta” and “the Ministry for the Economy, Investment and Small Business of Malta”, both using the official insignia of Malta.
The conference is, in fact, a private/commercial one, organised by a business called International Research Networks Ltd (IRN), which has an office in London’s Vestry Street and another one in Dubai.
The site carries this description of Malta’s motivation:
The country’s new political leadership and new energy authority have made it clear that oil efforts were ready to move forward, particularly because large companies are lining up to partner with Malta. As a matter of fact, they plan to open the island’s waters to oil projects in seven new areas.
Both those ministers, Chris Cardona and Konrad Mizzi, are to be keynote speakers at the conference (and yet Cardona claims not to know who Nair is).
Meanwhile, Oil Minister Joe Mizzi has been taken off the speakers’ list even though he was on it originally. An oil exploration conference about oil exploration in Malta at which Malta’s oil exploration minister is being replaced by Chris Cardona?
Hmmm.
Oh, and this has been in the pipeline, to use an apt phrase, for months, which means Shiv Nair – Konrad Mizzi’s consultant – would definitely have been involved because our government hadn’t yet discovered that we know Nair is permanently debarred by the World Bank.
Apart from all other considerations, I would like to know what Tony Zahra and his Malta Hotels & Restaurants Association have to say about this. This is a commercial conference organised by a company whose business it is to come up with themes and funding for conferences and sell them.
The only official endorsement is that of the Maltese government, not even Italy’s. The main speakers are from the Maltese government, and the company is using this fact to sell its conference. Some of the sponsors are Maltese companies. So why has this bit of conference business been taken to a Rome hotel rather than to one in Malta?
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http://www.italymaltasummit.com/
The Prime Minister should be promoting oil exploration (by attending the Rome conference) and not peddling Maltese passports on the cheap at Miami.
Can the government explain why the minister responsible for oil exploration is not attending this oil conference which is within his remit of responsibilities?
Wasn’t Joe Mizzi supposed to find us oil, or resign if his endeavour fails? Or is he stuck in a traffic jam, incognito on an Arriva bus and cannot cope single-handedly? After all he had publicly declared that he doesn’t trust anyone. It seems that the PM is not trusting him on oil exploration.
Where are the journalists to ask questions? What is going on in the Muscat government?
Hmm, that might explain the phantom fire starter.
Does Chris Cardona, Minister Of the Economy, Investment and Small Business of Malta, know anything about this? He doesn’t seem to know anything else.
Perhaps the emphasis is not so much exploration but the sale of gas through the Malta Government assisted by its new sources: Nair, Socar, Gasol., etc. Between them there already is a French alliance secured. That may also explain Hollande’s friendly disposition towards Muscat.
The UK seems to be going through the same pre-election campaign noises, grumbles and complaints by Labour that we went through. Does a common interest run through?
In The Guardian today.
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/oct/20/osborne-chinese-charm-offensive-ignorance
http://www.timesofmalta.com/mobile/view/20131020/local/malta-trying-to-attract-chinese-financial-services.491217
According to Edward Scicluna :
“China is a young dynamic economy reflecting its youth, while Europe is a graceful though more mature economy, sometimes exhibiting some sclerosis as well.”
This reminds me if Mintoff’s statement re Ewropa ta Abel u Cain.
We are losing our integrity fast and making ourselves the laughing stock of Europe through such actions and statements. Typical Labour.
At this rate, Joseph Muscat will not pull out Malta from the EU, but it is more likely that we will be shown the door by Brussels.
Conferences promoting oil exploration are usually held in the oil capitals of the world: London (UK) or Houston (Texas) and not Rome! Is it possible that the Maltese government has not realised it has been duped?
It seems that not even ENI, Italy’s major oil company, is fully participating at the Rome conference, let alone sponsoring the conference. So what will this be, a Roman holiday for Konrad Mizzi and Cardona paid by taxpayers?
Joe Mizzi is off the hook, although I cannot imagine him addressing an oil conference. What would he say, that he knows indisputably and without a shred of proof where the oil is located (as he said on TVM’s Bondi+ many months ago) and bring down the conference in laughter?
Joe Mizzi had already done this at our expense: in 1996 he had declared that Gozo has oil, spent some 30 million euro of our money on his bet and all we got was a dry well in Kercem, the deepest in the Mediterranean (should be aptly known as ‘il-hofra’, his then PM’s favourite slogan) :
http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2013-08-26/news/madonna-taz-zejt-well-was-a-33m-blunder-2423128067/
Joe Mizzi is hardly the man to lure investors for oil exploration.
So many questions come to mind.
Why is this event misleading the people into thinking that both Italy and Malta are participating, when there isn’t one Italian name amongst the participants?
Why is the Maltese government organising this event a) in Italy and b) through this company? From the Clients list and Testimonials on their website, there isn’t any government that has used their services. All the clients are companies.
Daphne, just like you I have a very strong feeling that there is Shiv Nair’s hand behind all this.
Is it possible that from the whole of Malta it is only you who picks up these controversial issues?
Where is the Opposition? And where are the Maltese journalists?
Again, I repeat, too many questions come to mind!
Ray Azzopardi, our honourable ambassador, was booked on the 16:05 flight to Brussels. At 16:00 he was still in the La Vallette lounge and with table manners that certainly didn’t indicate ambassadorial status, he was hunched over a ftira biz-zejt whilst his assistant, a man in an ill fitting suit and wearing dark sunglasses despite being indoors, fetched some drinks.
The assistant’s phone rang and after a short conversation he turned to the ambassador and stated ‘Qed jistennew lilna’.
With only slight urgency Mr Azzopardi took his last bite of ftira, the assistant downed his coffee and off they headed towards their gate. The flight was not marked as closed until 16:10.