People bring up children according to their own values. Just as I couldn’t have raised my sons to be criminals, so John Dalli couldn’t have raised his daughters to be anything other than what he is himself. Had they a strong mother who defied him and passed on her own different values, this would not have happened. But Mrs Dalli is clearly of a piece with her husband. You can’t discount the genetic factor either. Sometimes, a lot of what we call ‘values’ and ‘upbringing’ is actually genetic – character traits and personality flaws.

Directors don’t have to be resident in Malta and in fact they were not. Also, directors are not employees.

That is another good point.

ETC requires proper information to authorize employment for a non EU citizen.

How did Tyre/Corporate get approval for all of them, including the last directors with dubious past.

ETC also requires accounting information, that of course they didn’t have.

I did not mean “children” in the sense of youngsters incapable of making their own decisions. I believe Claire is 41 or thereabouts.

I meant the term in the broader sense of a parent not giving his children the proper education in ethics and morals and, instead, involving them in fraudulent behaviour.

Would you, for example, give your grown up sons the opportunity to get involved in criminal activity? Would you encourage them if they were involved in such activity?

From the way you speak about your children, I am sure you wouldn’t. On the contrary, you appear very proud that they are upstanding citizens.

This is the meaning I intended.

From my perspective and I may be wrong (you all know him better than I do) I’ve read about many of his past consulting backhander deals.

He sets up the play, and keeps witnesses to a minimum of one trusted person/sidekick.

(Jose Manuel Barroso messed up by not having a slew of witnesses when he asked for his resignation.)

He doesn’t sign anything; he has his daughters do all the signing from strategic positions as either director or secretary as a watch dog over his hidden investment.

I used to think he was like the Wizard of Oz hiding behind a curtain, but this scenario serves it better. He hides behind the skirt-tail of his daughter Claire Gauci Borda.

As EU Commissioner he wasn’t supposed to have any business interests, humanitarian or otherwise from what I’ve read. A politician’s main motivation when elected is to serve the people not his own interests.

They are not children. They are middle-aged adults. One of them must be 40 at least.

They are free operators.

To be a company director, you must be over 18. That means that fathers can’t ‘put’ their ‘children’ anywhere. They get involved of their own free will.

But I figure now that I know about the scam, that the money went into their pockets instead.