Labour’s 'musical chairs' in government corporations

Clarification: original reference to John Mary Abela was incorrect and now has been amended to John Abela, a computer science expert at the University of Malta.

The government yesterday announced new CEOs and chairmen at the helm of utility corporations Enemalta and the Water Services Corporation, in moves that follow the ousting of WSC chairman Tony Mejlaq.

Mejlaq - one-time chairman of the Telemalta corporation during the Sant administration - was also serving as chairman of the corporations' billing company ARMS (Automated Revenue Management Services).

But he was asked to resign earlier this week. It is not yet confirmed whether the resignation is linked to the fact that ARMS's new chief executive, James Davies - appointed some time in the summer - was his former business partner. The government said in a statement that Mejlaq will still be "giving his contribution in other spheres of government."

The most high-profile of appointments was that of outgoing Enemalta chief executive Louis Giordimaina, who has been designated as Peter Davies's successor at Air Malta. The move will see WSC chief executive Frederick Azzopardi, a Labour local councillor for Mdina, take up the Enemalta CEO's post; while the new chairman at ARMS will be computer science specialist John Abela.

The political nature of the appointments, none of which are by public call, was enough to attract comment from Nationalist MP George Pullicino, who said the new postings at WSC and Enemalta were "proof that Labour's definition of meritocracy is not about what one does, but whether you are a bootlicker or not."

Pullicino, formerly a minister for the environment, said he had previously raised the fact that the WSC board was not holding any meetings, citing differences between Tony Mejlaq and Frederick Azzopardi.

"These new positions are being made in a bid to save face after ARMS now loses its second chairman since Labour was elected. I was right when I raised this matter in parliament, but energy minister Konrad Mizzi tried to laugh it off. Government is trying to accommodate its own people rather than having the best possible candidates for a job."

New Air Malta chief

Air Malta now sees its former chief engineer Louis Giordimaina, returning to steer the airline when Peter Davies, the Welshman appointed in 2010 to take over a €230 million restructuring plan, moves out in April 2014.

Giordimaina has over 36 years' experience in the aviation industry, having joined Air Malta's engineering department in 1975 as an aircraft engineer, before becoming chief engineer in 1994. He was instrumental in the setting-up of Lufthansa Technik Malta, a joint venture between Lufthansa Tecknik and Air Malta, of which he was appointed CEO in 2002. He occupied this role until 2011 and retained as director of the company until September 2013.

In 2008 he was appointed chairman of the Water Services Corporation and in November 2011 he was appointed executive chairman of Enemalta.

It is yet to be seen whether Davies will be kept on a retainer at Air Malta to guide Giordimaina through the restructuring process of the national airline, after having halved the airline's losses from €78 million in 2011 to €30.9 million in 2013.

Tourism minister Karmenu Vella described Giordimaina's appointment as a confirmation that "a person shouldn't be foreigner to occupy top positions in a government company" - somewhat betraying Labour's discomfort with the choice of the €500,000-a-year Davies.

No public calls for posts

Putting paid to Labour's meritocracy battlecry, the top posts at the utility companies are now held by former Labour MP Charles Mangion as Enemalta chairman, Labour councillor Frederick Azzopardi as CEO and Abela as chairman at ARMS.

Under Tony Mejlaq, the CEO at billing company ARMS was his former business partner James Davies, who took over acting chief Henry Attard earlier in the summer. Davies was a company secretary and shareholder in a number of companies in which Mejlaq also had a controlling interest.

ARMS will now have its third chairman in less than nine months: Meilaq was appointed chairman in July 2013, replacing Xghajra mayor Anthony Valvo who was appointed in April.

Davies was a company secretary in Comtel International, CJTV Holdings, Management Outsourcing Co Ltd, and in the case of Traveltek he was also a shareholder with Meilaq.

And another common name is that of WSC deputy chairman Saviour Zammit, who was a director in Comtel, Traveltek, and Management Outsourcing before these companies were struck off the company register.