Labour raises further suspicions on prison appointments

Labour's home affairs spokesperson Michael Falzon said the "half baked and ambiguous" statement issued by the Office of the Prime Minister on the selection process for prison officials confirmed the chaotic situation at the Corradino Correctional Facility.

Yesterday, the Office of the Prime Minister announced that a selection process for a corrective supervisor and senior correctional officer at the Corradino Correctional Facility had to be stopped, after administrative action had allegedly compromised the selection process.

"Although the process itself was just and impartial, according to the Public Service Commission rules, it could not be vitiated by any doubts there might be," the OPM said in its statement.

The office pointed out that administrative steps have been taken to resume the selection process at the earliest possible.

Falzon insisted that the process was clouded by doubt from the very beginning, "not only because it was taking place in the midst of an electoral campaign but also because of the shortcomings in the manner in which the interviews were conducted."

The Labour candidate also asked the Prime Minister, who is also responsible for Home Affairs to confirm whether a prison official was unlawfully in possession of documents related to the selection process.

"What's even worse, the Prime Minister should also confirm whether these documents included clear indications of who was to be appointed to the posts while the process was ongoing and no decision had been taken yet," Falzon said.