The Malta Taghna Lkoll appointment to top them all
Talk about irresponsible. Two police commissioners – George Grech and John Rizzo – and one prime minister (Eddie Fenech Adami) deemed this man unfit to serve in the police force because of a strong suspicion of involvement with criminals.
But this government considers him fit to serve as director of operations at the VAT Department, where he is in charge of enforcement, investigations and has access to everyone’s private financial information.
Worse, he is slated to replace the current Director of the VAT Department, Charles Vella, when he retires in a couple of years.
That’s the security aspect. I won’t even bother going into the potential for political and personal vindictiveness, because it should be obvious. This man is part of the JPO/Andy Ellul/Vince Micallef ‘click’ and was photographed celebrating with Asti Spumante in Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando’s concrete garden on March 10, with Labour flags.
There’s the professional aspect to be considered. Ivan Portelli, by his own admission in court, spent ten years “bouncing from job to job” after being dismissed from the Police Force.
Exactly what does he know about the rigours of value added tax and its administration?
This is one hell of an irresponsible appointment – it comes piled onto all the others, but is certainly one of the worst and the most abusive, putting people at risk.
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http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2014-01-19/news/sacked-for-criminal-association-cleared-on-a-technicality-now-a-vat-director-3722117121/
Joseph’s due diligence at its best.
The confidential financial information of all business entities will be up for grabs, and given to those (MLP and associates) who are deemed to be the enemies of Muscat or who do not fork out enough ‘contributions’ to the MLP.
Exactly.
Does anyone have a copy of the taped conversations the ex-inspector had with the criminals?
His due due diligence was carried out by Henley and Something….similar to Shiv Nair’s.
What I don’t understand is that if they were cleared on a technicality shouldn’t there have been another process which followed the rules and have them disbanded again or is justice not worth it.
Also I read the article and did not understand the involvement of the judges in the story.
What do the switchers have to say about this?
Where are they, anyway?
I’m starting to think that public opinion in Malta has become so inured to such scandals that no one is surprised any more.
These appointments are being taken for granted.
I believe you’re correct. Scandal and mediocrity are what we routinely expect from a Labour government.
If John Bondin, il-Fusellu, was still alive, he would have been appointed as Director of Trade or the Commissioner of the Inland Revenue to go after those labelled as the enemy of the regime.
Who is Ivan Portelli? What is his relation to the Labour Party? Who is the ‘somebody high up in the government had cleared a path for Mr Portelli’?
Tilfu mhux ir-roadmap biss imma anke mohhhom.
Naħseb it-tnejn li huma qatt ma kienu hemm fil-verita’, ħlief forsi fl-immaġinazzjoni ta’ min ivvotalhom.
And what has become of the Public Service Commission and Public Service engagement procedures?
If I am understanding the report correctly this individual is not currently a public officer and is now being appointed to a headship post in a Government department. On what basis has this been done?
[Daphne – As I recall, when the court had ordered the reinstatement of the three dismissed police officers into the police force, Commissioner Rizzo refused to have them back in the force on the grounds that they posed a risk. Portelli was reinstated in the civil service, David Gatt had since become a lawyer and is now facing trial on suspected involvement in a bank robbery, and I have no idea what became of the other one.]
It is becoming a hallmark of Muscat’s “new” Labour Party to consort with international fraudsters and with local notorious rouge elements not by accident but as established modus operandi as if this anti-social behaviour were some “meritorious” qualification.
What bare-faced shameless arrogance..
Can you feel the tide of retribution shoring up?
I see. That explains the appointment on procedural grounds to an extent. As far as I know headship posts are normally only filled after a call for applications on the basis of very stringent criteria.
It would be interesting to know whether this is a direct appointment or not.
Whatever the case, to appoint a person with such a track-record to this sensitive or indeed any other senior post is a new low.
It is one thing when we are dealing with political appointments in secretariats but this is a permanent post in the Public Service. Shame, but unfortunately more of what we have come to expect.
If this is the model of due diligence that will be adopted in the sale-of-citizenship scheme, then God help us all.