Suspended Mimcol CEO appointed general manager at Tug Malta

Mizzi, who accepted to tender his resignation from Mimcol, was reportedly given a sum of money in exchange for bowing out.

The former Mimcol chief was investigated over allegations of corruption during the privatisation process for Malta Superyachts. Despite Mizzi’s resignation, the findings of the police investigation into the corruption allegations remain unknown.

The Privatisation Unit recently reopened tendering for privatisation of the superyacht facility in Bormla, while police are still investigating corruption claims.

Mizzi had allegedly informed a tendering firm for the superyachts facility that he could help their offer in return for a kickback, but the tenderers never reported the case to the police. Instead, they forwarded their concerns to an official at the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM).

The OPM official forwarded the claims to Finance Minister Tonio Fenech, who in turn made his own queries with the members of the Privatisation Unit.

The matter was later raised in parliament by Opposition leader Joseph Muscat, prompting the Prime Minister to forward the matter to the Commissioner of Police for investigation.

In the process, Mario Mizzi outed the whistleblower – marine engineer Paul Cardona – in a judicial protest he filed against him.

Cardona reiterated his claims to police, that during a meeting called by Mario Mizzi, the CEO had told him “if you take care of me, I am in a position to help you”, ostensibly referring to the superyachts’ privatisation.

The superyachts’ privatisation had been flagged as irregular by one of the bidding consortia back in 2009 for having been stopped in November and then restarted, allowing two separate bidders – the Palumbo and Manoel Island consortia – to present a joint bid.