Labour Party official given direct order for ‘Carnival Experience’ project in Marsa

A few days ago I received a print-out of two emails, in an envelope, anonymously. The email messages, dated last August, are both from Annabelle Stivala Attard, direct of festivals and events at the Arts Council Malta, to Johan Galea and copied to Anton Miceli, both also officials at the arts council.

It is a request for a direct order for “architect supervision works” for the government’s planned ‘carnival village’ in Marsa, to be given to William Lewis, an architect of indifferent ability who is the Labour Party’s segretarju organizzativ.

Ms Stivala Attard asks whether everything is fine so that she can “forward it to Albert for approval”. Albert is the arts council chief, Albert Marshall, whose wife Jane featured prominently in the Labour Party’s 2013 electoral campaign video, Malta Tagħna Lkoll, saying “Jiena nemmen f’Joseph għax Joseph jemmen fija”.

Last Friday I rang Ms Stivala Attard on the direct line given in her email signature, to enquire about the details of this direct order. She was taken aback, but recovered admirably and asked me to send my questions by email. I insisted on asking my questions over the phone, telling her that email questions are never even acknowledged, let alone answered, but she refused.

So I emailed her as beneath:

Dear Ms Stivala Attard,

It has come to my attention that last summer you made a request for a direct order to be given to William Lewis, an architect, for supervision works for the Carnival Experience project in Marsa, which then had to be signed off by the CEO, Albert Marshall.

Was the direct order confirmed, and if so, what is the effective period of the contract and its value?

Please reply directly to this email.

As anticipated, there hasn’t even been an acknowledgement, let alone a reply. So today I began ringing Ms Stivala Attard on her direct line, which went straight to voice mail. I tried the main line at the arts council and was promptly told that she’s in a meeting (one of those all-day meetings, apparently, where the secretary can’t even take a message), and when I asked for Albert Marshall, I was told that he had left the building, just like Elvis.

So I found William Lewis’s mobile number and rang him on that, but what do you know, it was transferred to his office in Hal Qormi and the secretary came over all flustered when she took my name, after initially jumping down my throat, and recovered sufficiently to take my number. Suffice it to say that Mr Lewis hasn’t rung back, nor do I expect him to.

William Lewis shows precious little interest in architecture or design. He uses his Facebook page for the sole purpose of promoting Joseph Muscat’s messages, Joseph Muscat’s videos, Joseph Muscat’s photographs, and the Labour Party’s meetings and events.

His design and aesthetic skills are evident in the collapsible stalls, covered with eight-pointed crosses, which he conceived for the Valletta market, and which were aborted after the massive outcry of public disgust when the prototype was unveiled.

When the Lands Authority was constituted a few weeks ago, under the chairmanship of a disgraced judge who narrowly slid out of impeachment, his wife, Odette Lewis, was appointed to the board.