Permanent Secretary denies advising Jason Azzopardi on Spinola property, PAC hears

The permanent secretary who previously worked with ex-minister Jason Azzopardi told the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) that he had not given any advice to Azzopardi regarding the sale of the property situated at 83, Spinola Road, St Julian’s.

Azzopardi had last week, in response to a parliamentary question, maintained that it was the permanent secretary who had advised him on the deal reached for the outright sale of the property to Eighty-Two Company Limited, which belonged to Vincent Farrugia.

Testifying under oath at this evening’s PAC, permanent secretary Paul Zahra said that he had limited recollection of the Spinola case, which had already started before he got involved with it, with his involvement having only been casual.

He said that Azzopardi had asked him to join him for a meeting with Lands Department officials, regarding the property. He recounted how his input during the meeting had been limited, and that by then the case had already progressed to a significant degree, and there wasn’t a lot he could add to the meeting which was of value.

A number of possible options for the sale had been presented at the meeting, he said, and while he could not remember exactly what they where, he maintained that the decision for the property to be paid for over a certain number of years had been already taken by the time of the meting.

When asked if the minister had asked for his reaction and advice, as a civil servant, on the sale, Zahra said this was not so. The permanent secretary had a supervisory, not advisory role, he maintained.

Pressed whether he ever gave any recommendation about the case, Zahra replied that he had no recollection of giving a recommendation, and thus did ‘not think’ he ever recommended anything in relation to the case.

The objective of the meeting was to start reaching a closing point on the sale, and there was not much which Zahra could contribute since the decision was already close to being taken.

The deal could not go ahead without the approval of the Minister, Zahra said, and the final endorsement was given by minister Azzopardi and the Commissioner of Lands. Zahra also said that he was not present at the meeting when the minister endorsed the outright sale of the property.

The government had the option of, rather than selling the property outright, granting it by perpetual emphyteusis, which would have netted the government over €600,000. The government only received €35 from the property which was sold for €525,000, due to an agreement on properties which were formerly owned by the Church.

The committee, chaired by Nationalist MP Beppe Fenech Adami, includes Labour MPs Robert Abela, Julia Farrugia Portelli, Clayton Bartolo and Silvio Schembri for the government, and Kristy Debono, Karol Aquilina and Claudio Grech, who represent the Nationalist opposition. Nobody from the opposition was present at today’s committee meeting.

Earlier today, Opposition leader Adrian Delia said that he would be meeting with Azzopardi this evening before taking a decision on the ex-minister’s political responsibility in the case.

Read more:

[WATCH] Adrian Delia will not commit to supporting Chris Said’s motion