Mrs Konrad Mizzi has an ambassador’s contract, is to have a consulate opened for her in Shanghai, but does not report to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
So, does he fancy Mrs Konrad Mizzi or what?
What a corrupt bunch of cronies.
Her contract is with Malta Enterprise as represented by its chief, that bearded Mintoffian fossil and lazy good-for-nothing Mario Vella who helped Muscat write his PhD thesis.
Mrs Konrad Mizzi has an ambassador’s contract and all the perks, but it wasn’t given to her by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It was given to her by Malta Enterprise. So now Malta Enterprise can appoint ambassadors, can it, as long as it calls them something else: special envoy.
Nor does she report to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She reports to Malta Enterprise.
Mrs Konrad Mizzi is not an ambassador so she should not be getting a fully-expensed residence. The norm for persons serving overseas, except in the case of ambassadors, is to have a percentage added to their global emoluments to cover housing.
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Mario Vella, Gorg Vella, mhux xorta?
It seems that the Government is also testing the boundaries of international laws and conventions.
The Vienna Convention sets the parameters for diplomatic personnel and their status overseas.
In this case, if Mrs Konrad Mizzi does not report to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs she should be an attache of some sort, but without any consular functions (unless she reports to Immigration).
Well, she said she wanted to expedite the visa-processing for Chinese citizens, right? That is a very profitable activity in China since Chinese are used to paying over the odds for their visas, and Malta’s visa is a Schengen visa.
When is Muscat going to table the Clifford Borg Marks’ contract as ambassador?
Borg Marks already had a home in China. Are we paying him to live in it?
He probably already owned a car. Are we paying him to use it, just as we pay Muscat to use his?
Did Borg Marks get a settling in allowance, even though he’s been comfortably settled in China ever since he went there on a scholarship under Mintoff’s government?
His children, presumably, were already settled in school. Are we now paying their school fees?
Did he get an outfit allowance? He sorely needs it.
Sound fishy, and we’ re looking at another visa-related fiasco.
http://time.com/2984691/asian-nations-fear-war-with-china/
http://www.inewsmalta.com/dart/20140716-iffirmat-ftehim-bejn-il-gvern-malti-kumpanija-indjana
Awful reporting.
“bejn il-gvern Malti u l-kumpanija Indjana Nasscom” … “Min-naħa tiegħu ċ-Chairman ta’ Nasscom qal li bħala kumpanija tal-ICT qed ifittxu li sal-2020 ikabbru n-negozju tagħhom b’€300 miljun.”
What? Nasscom is not even a company. It is a trade association in India.
http://www.nasscom.in/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NASSCOM
Begs the question.. can’t the journalist even do a Google search these days? I hope its the journalist got it wrong and not the government’s press release.
Has Alfred Sant nothing to say about this “hbieb tal-hbieb” filth by his poodle?
He’s sorted for life. Why would he?
That ‘Chink in the Armour’ joke isn’t funny anymore.
With a scandal of these proportions – hidden information, misleading information, lies, and cronyism, the prime minister has three options:
1. He demands the resignation of Ms. Mizzi Liang to save the job of her husband.
2. He demands the resignation of the Minister of Energy and Ovaltine to save the job of Ms. Mizzi Liang.
3. He resigns because he has mishandled this scandal from the outset and continues to do so.
If he does not take one of these 3 options within a reasonable time, then there will be only one other option remaining:
4. All three of them should resign.
As Konrad Mizzi would shriek, under a different administration, “Shame on you, Mr Prime Minister”
It is highly important to note that the expenses for pillows and bedsheets are not included in Sai Liang’s contract.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/127035781/Joseph-Muscat-PhD-Thesis
The biographical note (PDF p. 161, section 4.3.1) references Mario Vella, and flatteringly references Anthony Giddens’ introduction to a book in which one of Vella’s essays appears.
http://daphnecaruanagalizia.com/2013/03/heres-a-bit-from-joseph-muscats-doctoral-thesis-in-the-distinctive-style-of-mario-vella/
So shameful. This government feels it is answerable to no one.
They’re going against international law here, the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations in particular.
Sai Mizzi Lang’s salary includes Eur 39,769 as “non-taxable salary”. One must ask for clarification under which section of this Income Tax Act is this portion of the salary non-taxable.
If on the other hand this portion of the salary is non-taxable as it is being paid as such by the employer, then the employer must gross up this amount at the applicable tax rates and pay the tax to the Inland Revenue.
On Eur 39,769 approximately Eur 21,400 tax would be due which means that the total emoluments per annum should effectively increase from Eur 159,917 to Eur 181,317, which is equivalent to over Eur 15,100 per month.
There is a clause in the income tax act, Malta, for work undertaken exclusively overseas to be taxed differently.
To be taxed differently but not tax free!
Taxed differently is not the same as tax free!
It’s complex and I don’t feel like getting stuck into an argument, but essentially, the element that is linked to work in Malta or from Malta would be taxed under the usual rules.
Work that is undertaken exclusively outside of Malta is hardly taxed and then you need to consider the diplomatic protocols, host country taxation of foreign nationals or domiciles, and the prevailing double tax treaty agreements.
She is not an ambassador, but a civil servant with a foreign posting. Benefits in kind (BIKs) would normally be excluded from Malta taxation if provided and used overseas, as are other welfare or state benefits.
l-ewwel ambaxxatur bla ktieb
I refuse to believe that the PM is stupid enough to publicly drop a clanger such as this, which would be easily and immediately ripped to shreds by anyone with half a brain, let alone the Opposition and the ‘independent’ media.
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20140716/editorial/editorial-sai-mizzi-has-nothing-to-cry-about.527881
http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2014-07-16/news/sai-mizzi-has-high-end-ambassador-package-5858787330/
Am I wrong? Is Joseph Muscat THAT stupid?
‘It could have been handled better’ says that moron of a PM that the country has been lumped with.
I say ‘It could not have been handled worse than it has’.
An unmitigated disaster on all fronts.
The stench of corruption emanating from this outrageous appointment and package is sickening.
Half a million euros over three years.
What most Maltese workers can hope to earn in a lifetime of 45 years of hard work.
L-arlogg tal-lira taghom f’ghajnhom.
Does she get a diplomatic passport too?
Maybe she has dual citizenship – Maltese and Chinese – as well?