Minn fuq dahar il-poplu: Muscat tried to get Labour's CEO paid by the public purse or by Air Malta

We know that the Labour Party owes money all over the shop and can’t pay its bills. But there have to be limits to bumming off the public purse and state corporations. Alfred Sant got the salary of Super One creep (Str82DPoint) Robert Francalanza paid by the state by putting down his name as his chauffeur, when he drove himself around and didn’t need one.

Now I’ve discovered that Sant and Muscat cooperated on an attempt at bumming yet another Labour functionary’s salary off the state or a state-owned corporation.

On 29 July, shortly after being elected leader of the Labour Party, Joseph Muscat wrote to the prime minister, seeking to place on the public payroll a personal assistant for Alfred Sant. It was an unprecedented move because the state does not pay for personal assistants for MPs, even if they are former prime ministers.

Muscat said in his letter that Sant had identified James Piscopo, an Air Malta employee, as his personal choice.

The prime minister replied on 5 August, saying that he had discussed the matter with Air Malta’s chairman, and it was agreed that Piscopo would be allowed special leave of absence from Air Malta – but unpaid – for as long as he served as Alfred Sant’s personal administrative assistant. Piscopo, the prime minister wrote, should discuss the matter with his chairman.

James Piscopo did so. He agreed with the Air Malta chairman that his job would be kept open while he went off to assist the former prime minister who is a recovering cancer patient, and that he would return with no loss of seniority or pay.

Just two weeks later, Joseph Muscat announced that the Labour Party had appointed a chief executive officer: James Piscopo.

This is Muscat’s letter.

Ghaziz Prim Ministru,

Wara diversi diskussjonijiet informali li kellek, inklux mal-Whip tal-Grupp Parlamentari Laburista Joe Mizzi, rigward ghajnuna personali f’forma ta’ assistenza amministrattiva lill-eks Prim Ministru Dr Alfred Sant, qed nitolbok formalment biex tikkunsidra lis-Sur James Piscopo (ID 225578M) ikun il-persuna maghzula biex taghmel dan ix-xoghol.

Dr Sant innifsu infurmani li s-Sur Piscopo, li fil-prezent huwa impjegat ma’ l-Air Malta, huwa l-persuna tal-fiducja tieghu.

Ghaldaqstant, gentilment nitolbok tikkunsidra din it-talba u inkun grat jekk din tigi milqugha mill-aktar fis possibbli.

Dejjem tieghek,

Joseph Muscat
Mexxej
Partit Laburista

Unbelievable. They have the same mentality as those people who try to scrounge as many social benefits as possible, by pretending to be single when they’re not, by claiming that they don’t know who the father of their baby is, and by taking sick-leave to do a bit of moonlighting. Jaqq.