PN calls on Information Commissioner to investigate Café Premier FOI reply

The Nationalist Party is caling on the Informartion and Data Protection Commissioner to investigate a refusal to a Freedom of Information request by the Lands Department, for documents related to the €4.2 Café Premier bailout.

Nationalist MP Ryan Callus said the IPDC had to investigate the allegation carried in MaltaToday, that the Lands Department had refused thenewspaper a second request to disclose documents because a police investigation was underway - when in fact the police investigation had been concluded.

"This means the Lands Department did not say the truth in its reply to MaltaToday's FOI request," Callus, the PN spokesperson for planning, said.

Callus said the Opposition had asked the IDPC to investigate the Lands Department's refusal. The IDPC is empowered by Articles 21, 24 and 25 of the Freedom of Information Act, to investigate and ensure that the Lands Department was honouring its obligations as laid down in the law. "The Opposition reminds the government that this refusal goes against its own pledge for more transparency and accountability," Callus said.

The police investigation, originally requested by the government into suggestions by Nationalist MP Jason Azzopardi about whether “commissions” were paid to the owners of the Café Premier to vacate their premises, was concluded earlier this year.

But the Lands Department rejected for the second time a Freedom of Information request by MaltaToday, claiming that documents requested on the Premier bailout are exempt “due to an ongoing police investigation”.

The reason for refusal was belied by a source close to the police investigation, who told MaltaToday the investigation had been concluded after a statement made by Azzopardi.

On his part, Azzopardi confirmed that he made it clear to the investigating officer that he had not suggested any form of criminal activity.

“However, even if a fact does not amount to a crime, it doesn’t follow that it is politically acceptable... the total lack of transparency in the Labour government’s decision to cancel court action against Cities Entertainment Ltd after its election to power, forking out €4.2 million in tax money instead of court action to rescind the deed, is neither good governance nor value for public money.

“If the police investigation is over, then nothing should stop government from coming clean on its deal with to cancel court action. The media should be granted access to all the files to view the valuations and their authors, the timelines involved and all the relevant Land Department minutes.”

Background

The Lands Department on Thursday rejected MaltaToday’s freedom of information request for the correspondence exchanged with the company that was paid €4.2 million to relinquish a 65-year lease on Café Premier, after it had been sued in court by the same Lands Department over non-payment of its annual lease.

Cities Entertainment was faced with eviction in December 2012 but after Labour’s election, the court action was stopped in the summer of 2013, and the government paid the company enough money to settle its banking debt and outstanding dues to public corporations and creditors, so that it would vacate the premises.

The Lands Department is refusing also to reveal the reports and architect’s estimate carried out to assess the value of compensation payable to Cities Entertainment, for the “amicable expropriation” – as it was dubbed by the parliamentary secretariat for lands – of the two premises on Old Treasury and Old Theatre streets.

The Lands Department said the documents were exempt “due to an ongoing police investigation” that had been initiated by the then parliamentary secretary for lands, Michael Farrugia, over comments made by Jason Azzopardi.

The Lands Department even availed itself of the maximum time at law to refuse the application: it was filed on 21 April, then extended by the Lands Department on 20 June, refused on 12 June, and again refused on internal review on 22 July – an entire three months.

Under Article 30 of the FOIA, a document is exempt from the law if it “could be reasonably expected to prejudice the conduct of an investigation” into a breach of the law.

Under the deal brokered by the Labour government, Cities Entertainment had to pay back an outstanding €2.5 million bank loan, their income tax and VAT arrears, energy bills, ground rents owed to the State, and other creditors of the owners of the Café Premier.

Cities Entertainment director Neville Curmi, an established stockbroker, had claimed with MaltaToday that taxpayers “got value for their money” because the value of Café Premier was far more than €4.2 million.

At the time of the court action, the café was paying just over €93,000 in annual ground rent.

Under the €4.2 million deal, Cities Entertainment paid back €307,346 to settle outstanding arrears with the government property division and €504,000 in capital gains tax owed on the land; €192,748 to the Inland Revenue Department to settle income tax and social security payments, €227,058 to the VAT Department on outstanding dues and legal procedures against the company, and €130,963 in energy bills for ARMS; and also €210,000 to the company’s own shareholders, M&A Investments, and €3,265 to creditors Golden Harvest.

Finally, another €2,560,800 was paid to Banif Bank, in settlement of the outstanding bank loans that Cities Entertainment held with the bank, payable in four instalments.