Muscat steams ahead with Farrugia Sacco impeachment as commission finds ethics' breach

The Commission for the Adminstration of Justice has found Judge Lino Farrugia Sacco to have acted incorrectly in retaining his post as president of the Malta Olympic Committee, in breach of the judiciary's code of ethics.

In its decision, the CAJ, which regulates the judiciary, said an impeachment motion filed by prime minister Lawrence Gonzi had been proved.

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and Opposition leader Simon Busuttil have agreed to proceed with the impeachment motion process without any further delays. Addressing the House, Joseph Muscat said the House Business Committee will now decide on the way forward, refusing to comment any further on the case.

The Opposition leader welcomed the Prime Minister's decision to proceed with the process and said the Opposition will fully participate in the proceedings.

Farrugia Sacco had been informed in writing back in February 2006 to answer to the fact that his MOC presidency was incompatible with his role as judge due to a breach of the judiciary's code of ethics. He was reminded to resign his post in several communications from the CAJ throughout 2006. In 2007, he was formally told by the CAJ that his conflict was in breach of the judiciary's code of ethics.

The Commission took note of the fact that as MOC president, in 2012 Farrugia Sacco held a meeting with two undercover reporters from the Sunday Times of London posing as ticket resellers, during which a method of bypassing Winter Olympic ticket resale rules was discussed.

"It does not result that the judge was involved in the illicit trade of Olympics tickets. But the allegations and the publicity they recieved, was the direct result of his refusal to align himself with this commission's directive in 2007. This harmed the respect and honour that the judiciary should aspire to, and undermined the public's trust in its operations, and breached the Code of Ethics."

But the CAJ said it had accepted Farrugia Sacco's version that the undercover video had been "edited in a misleading manner", even though the two reporters were not asked to testify in the CAJ proceedings.

The decision was communicated by the Speaker of the House this evening in parliament. Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said he would move ahead with the impeachment process without any delay, so that the House Business Committee finds a date to discuss the motion.

Farrugia Sacco's case was forwarded to the CAJ in an impeachment motion initiated by Lawrence Gonzi back in June 2012.

The case was forwarded to President George Abela, who chairs the commission, to investigate Farrugia Sacco's behaviour during a meeting with two undercover reporters proposing a way to circumvent Olympics ticket resale rules.

Abela recused himself from the case, having represented Farrugia Sacco in a previous hearing before the CAJ on a breach of the judiciary's code of ethics. The CAJ's deputy chairman, Chief Justice Silvio Camilleri, presided in his stead.

Undercover sting

The case, which emerged in The Sunday Times of London, saw undercover reporters offer a €60,000 fee for rights to sell the MOC's tickets for the Sochi winter games. Farrugia Sacco and MOC general secretary Joe Cassar were covertly recorded by the reporters, posing as envoys of a Middle Eastern ticket tout, and heard explaining how high mark-ups for the tickets could be "camouflaged" through "subtle" marketing techniques.

Farrugia Sacco denied any wrongdoing, and sued The Times, which reported the Sunday Times of London's report, for defamation. In court, he presented a statement from the International Olympic Committee's director-general, Christophe De Kepper, saying an investigation by the IOC's ethics commission "did not have the intention to impair or otherwise harm the reputation and honour" of the MOC president.

No sanctions or reprimand were imposed by the IOC on Farrugia Sacco, but the IOC ethics commission said that Farrugia Sacco had "allowed the journalists to prove their point" in a discussion on the authorised ticket reselling for the Sochi games.

MOC secretary-general Joe Cassar was declared to have "helped to prove the point being made by the journalists, namely that the sports world and those who work with it are prepared to violate the rules" and that as a result "tarnished" the reputation of the Olympic Movement.

Prior to the CAJ investigation, Farrugia Sacco unsuccessfully sought the recusal of Chamber of Advocates president Reuben Balzan and judge Victor Caruana Colombo.

Farrugia Sacco had told the court that he was in no doubt that the prime minister's decision to start the impeachment process was politically loaded, and requested the recusal of Caruana Colombo because he was Gonzi's appointee to the commission; while lawyer Reuben Balzan was described as having "a close affiliation" with PN leader Simon Busuttil.