Labour Party chief executive resigns, earmarked for Transport Malta

Labour Party chief executive James Piscopo has resigned his party post, the PL said in a statement.

No mention was made of what Piscopo's next career move would be, although Piscopo is earmarked for the role of executive chairman at Transport Malta.

The regulator's chairman is currently Mark Portelli, while the chief executive is Stanley Portelli.

Piscopo was seconded to the Labour Party from Air Malta, to fulfill the role of managing the party's day-to-day affairs instead of a secretary-general, a democratically-elected role that Muscat abolished.

"Labour thanks James Piscopo for his excellent service, which was instrumental for the party to win this election and for the party to be organised effectively and efficiently. We augur him all the success for the future."

Muscat's move to appoint Piscopo as chief executive needed party delegates' support at the 2008 general conference to officialise the post, especially since it undercut the last secretary-general Jason Micallef, who had won re-election to his post even after he was publicly called to resign by veteran MPs after the 2008 election loss.

Muscat gad attempted to counter the Micallef factor by cordoning off part of the secretary-general's role, and appointing Piscopo to run the party's day-to-day affairs. Both party lieutenants were in open conflict, badmouthing each other in the presence of other officials. The rift was instantly exposed at Muscat's swearing-in as Opposition leader, when Micallef desisted from handling the live transmission of the ceremony, by forcing Piscopo to get directly involved in the matter, with mediocre results.