Nationalist party stalwart questions PN secretary general's wisdom

MaltaToday revealed last Sunday how Nationalist party’s secretary-general Paul Borg Olivier had just returned to Malta after holidaying in the Mediterranean on board PN donor and construction magnate Nazzareno Vassallo’s brand new superyacht, the ‘Perla’

It was an identical rehash of the 2007 vacation with the former secretary-general Joe Saliba, Zaren Vassallo has also courted Paul Borg Olivier aboard his luxury superyacht for a much-needed summer break.  Borg Olivier was in fact spotted together with his wife lounging on board the Perla, a brand new 75-foot Princess superyacht, in Sicily by many Maltese boaters who were berthed in different parts of Sicily.  Zaren Vassallo has been at the centre of various controversial tenders in massive mega million projects funded by tax payers money.

The other Maltese press has been relatively silent about the whole affair with PBS noticeably absent in reporting the incident.

Sammut a former PBS chairman and a former  political appointee on various government boards, wrote in his opinion in The Times last Tuesday: “... Mr Vassallo, no doubt, deserves to have as a result of his toil and resultant success. Whether he wishes to finance the Nationalist Party or the dog’s home, for that matter, is nobody’s business, it’s just his choice in a free country. But is Dr Borg Olivier really his friend, as the latter has declared? I wouldn’t think so.”

Dr Sammut who has as a legal partner PN MEP Simon Busuttil said : “ I suppose everybody is entitled to have new friends as one moves forward and things develop. The problem is that two or three years ago, another “friend” of Mr Vassallo – more likely to be a real friend, as opposed to Dr Borg Olivier, since Joe Saliba has the Mosta connection – also had a holiday on Mr Vassallo’s yacht, and good for him, and certainly nothing wrong at all. Yet, Mr Saliba’s holiday raised one hell of a hullabaloo. Why did Dr Borg Olivier repeat this unnecessarily? He could have had a holiday somewhere else. Perhaps it was a challenge to Labour?”

He ended by saying: “But, where is all this getting me? Dr Borg Olivier has been extremely “politically insensitive” in going on this trip following the reaction to that of his predecessor, whether the latter was right or wrong to do so. When will we learn?”

Sammut’s reaction contrasts to the relevant silence from other commentators.  Though the Labour party's One TV has hooked itself on the Borg Olivier holiday.    Nonetheless Zaren Vassallo ‘boat’ trips also seem to cater for somne personalities from the Opposition.  Some Labour politicians have also had a taste of his hospitality.

Indeed Labour MEP Edward Scicluna, who was closely associated in business with Zaren Vassallo, has been unusually silent when tackling allegations and accusations which directly involve Zaren Vassallo. Scicluna had been appointed to chair the board of a consortium, CWG plc, made up of eight companies one of which includes Vassallo Builders Group. But it seems that One TV is taking a different tack. In recent months control and direction of news at One TV has been the prerogative of Joseph Muscat's office.