International news website Euractiv has highlighted that Toni Abela's possible appointment to the European Court of Auditors could be "handicapped" by the 'Blokka Bajda' saga.
Just before the 2013 election, Dr Abela had been embroiled in a controversy related to what became notoriously known as the "blokka bajda" (white brick).
In an interview with a local newspaper during those tumultuous days, Dr Abela, when asked whether the white block was cocaine, had said he didn't know what it was, and that all he knew was from what he was told.
Euractiv, however, described the incident as a "cocaine affair". (Click here)
"However, it remains to be seen if the cocaine story could impact on Abela's appointment to the European Court of Auditors," the influential Euractiv reports. Dr Abela was last Saturday nominated by the Prime Minister as Malta's nominee for the European Court of Auditors and he will face a tough grilling before his nomination is accepted.
During the 2013 interview, Dr Abela had said that the President of the Safi Club had seen someone, believed at the time to be a friend of the barman, cutting up a "blokka bajda'.
The barman was later sacked; however Dr Abela did not contact the police directly at the time.
In a recording that had surfaced, Dr Abela is heard speaking about an incident in a PL club, where the president of the club was sacked after he had allegedly disposed of white powder, which seemed to suggest the white powder was an illegal substance.
In the recording, Dr Abela implies that he did not go to the police station because it would get the club's president in trouble and the case would attract a lot of media attention. It later emerged that the club in question was the Safi club and the case dated back to 2010.
According to Euractiv, the Court is composed of one member from each member state, who is appointed after a hearing in the Budgetary Control Committee of the European Parliament, and a non-binding majority-vote in the committee, as well as in the plenary of the European Parliament.
Back in 2010, Louis Galea also faced a grilling session by the Committee before his nomination was accepted.
Efforts to speak to Dr Abela have proven futile.
from The Malta Independent http://ift.tt/1Sq4HR3
via IFTTT
No comments:
Post a Comment