Update 3 | Magistrate revokes arrest warrant, fine against Borg Olivier

Magistrate Edwina Grima has revoked an arrest warrant and a €70 fine she imposed on outgoing PN secretary general Paul Borg Olivier this morning for contempt, after it was established that he was inside the Court building after all, attending to other legal business after all.

The arrest warrant and fine for contempt was issued soon after 9:30am by Magistrate Grima after Borg Olivier failed to turn up for a court sitting in which he faces crimal charges for slander against home affairs minister Manwel Mallia.

While the case was put off for May 16 and media reported the arrest warrant, Borg Olivier was informed about the developments and rushed to Magistrate Grima's court room where he was seen explaining the circumstances as to why he was not present for the sitting. After considering the expalnations, the Magistrate issued a counter-decree revoking the sanctions.

When Borg Olivier's apology was accepted by the Court, Police Inspector Robert Vella took the witness stand to explain that a police report was filed by lawyer Arthur Azzopardi on behalf of then Labour candidates Manwel Mallia and David Farrugia Sacco. The two complained of being slandered by reports which appeared in the PN’s website MaltaRightNow.com which implied their involvement in the Enemalta oil procurement scandal.

Inspector Vella said that he summoned Borg Olivier to the Police General Headquarters in Floriana, where he released a statement, confirming that he was the chief executive of Media.Link Communications, which operated the website. Borg Olivier said that he did not know who wrote the articles, adding that the company’s newsroom was made up of a number of reporters.

He added that the articles followed a press conference which was given by Mallia and Farrugia Sacco at the height of the electoral campaign.

While home affairs minister Manwel Mallia had sued Borg Olivier for slandering him by linking him to the Enemalta oil procurement scandal.

A defiant Borg Olivier has said last week that he had "no apology" to make to Mallia over what he said during a press conference at the PN headquarters on February 23, despite the minister saying that he had no further intentions in seeking a prison term should the PN secretary general be convicted of slander.

Borg Olivier said that he would not give in to what he described as "schoolyard bullying". While Mallia insisted that will not withdraw the criminal libel proceedings against him.

At the height of the controversy, Mallia said that he was seeking Borg Olivier's imprisonment over allegations that attempted to link him to the Enemalta oil scandal due to legal services he rendered to the Farrugia family.

Asked whether he would pursue the case following his appointment as minister, a spokesman for the minister said that Mallia 'took note' of Borg Olivier's refusal to apologise for the "blatantly untrue" and "malicious" allegations.

"It is important that the truth be allowed to come out fully, and unless this is done by a retraction from Borg Olivier, then the protection of the law and the courts will continue to be sought," the ministry said.