MEP questions ‘solid base’ of Dalli investigation after Schembri audit

Green MEP Bart Staes has called into question the investigation by the EU's anti-fraud unit OLAF into former commissioner John Dalli after Rita Schembri, who assisted OLAF chief Giovanni Kessler in his investigation on Dalli, was found to have lied to a board of review and the Auditor General.

Schembri was accused of having been untruthful under oath in an audit the National Audit Office conducted of her professional conduct, after MaltaToday broke the news that the head of governance had  been carrying out private business from her government office.

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As permanent secretary, Schembri also headed the anti-fraud coordinating service (Afcos) which liaised with OLAf chief Giovanni Kessler to carry out the investigations into an alleged bribe attempt that implicated John Dalli. She resigned from the OLAF supervisory committee just three weeks ago.

"Well Kessler and Barroso: is the investigation that you used to sack a commissioner at gunpoint built on a solid base?" Staes asked in a piece he penned for Public Service Europe. "It is not surprising that on December 24, 2012, the lawyers of Dalli filed a complaint with the European Court of Justice against the European Commission for violation of Article 245 of the treaty, which deals with the way the organisation can dismiss people. One thing is clear from all this: we are six months on and the truth about Dalligate is still not clear."

John Dalli stepped down as European health commissioner after being asked to resign by European Commission José Barroso on 16 October 2012, on the strength of a covering letter to an OLAF report that claimed he was aware of a bribe being solicited from Swedish Match, to reverse an EU ban on the retail of snus.

Staes was among the MEPs who called for a committee into lobbying after his colleague Jose Bové released a recording of his conversation with two officials of Swedish Match, during which Johann Gabriellson said that a meeting described by Maltese lobbyist Gayle Kimberly - in which she claimed to have met with Zammit who then asked for the money in return for a favourable directive - never in fact took place.

The MEP has also claimed that Europe's top officials are adamant that "the dirt of Dalligate" does not come out, after his request for a special committee of inquiry into lobbying was turned down. "What European Parliament President Martin Schulz, European Commission President José Manuel Barroso and others would not like to see in the middle of a European identity crisis, is that the dirt of Dalligate comes out," Staes said.

"What is even more worrying is that the European Parliament seems to be working along with the Commission to keep the dirt inside. Last week the three presidents of the biggest political groups in the EP decided - in agreement with EP president Schulz - that contrary to an earlier agreement Barroso and Kessler should no longer be heard in the EP. And as expected our call as greens for a special committee was also rejected after delaying the decision for months."

Staes also alleged that Dalli's resignation was prompted by a wanton delay for the introduction of the EU Tobacco Products Directive.

"We want to know which role the tobacco industry played in this and what was the role of Catherine Day, secretary-general of the commission - and other officials - in this process. Day has postponed the interservice consultation process for the EU Tobacco Products directive on at least at two occasions.

"After the behaviour of Schulz and others, we are determined to end the secrecy around Dalligate. The current rules concerning the EC and lobbying appear to be too weak."