[WATCH] Zammit Lewis calls on PN leader to ‘walk the talk’ on de Marco affair

Tourism minister expects PN leader Simon Busuttil to take action against Mario de Marco who stands accused of having received an undeclared gift while in office

Tourism minister expects PN leader Simon Busuttil to take action against Mario de Marco

The Labour Party today called on Opposition leader Simon Busuttil to “walk the talk” and take a decision over PN deputy leader Mario de Marco, over allegations that he had benefitted from unpaid construction works on his house.

Tourism minister Edward Zammit Lewis said that Busuttil had lied that de Marco published invoices for the works, claiming that de Marco himself had denied that the relevant documentation had been published.

Despite the protests of PN media reporters who insisted that Busuttil had claimed that the invoices had been produced but not published, Zammit Lewis told journalists present at this afternoon’s press conference in Valletta that Busuttil had lost all credibility on good governance.

Speaking hours before a no confidence motion in minister Konrad Mizzi is discussed in Parliament, Zammit Lewis - speaking on behalf of his party - insisted that the investigation carried out by the opposition was a fait accompli, adding that while Busuttil was expecting high standards from governmemt he was acting as “judge and jury” when it came to PN affairs.

MaltaToday revealed that de Marco in March paid €34,000 for construction works carried out on his house in 2011 by Redmap Constructions. This means that he only paid for the ongoing works after Redmap’s owner Pierre Sladden was named in the Panama Papers as having used offshore firms in the British Virgin Islands.

De Marco claims that he had regularly requested an invoice, but that the contractor insisted that the invoice be issued once the works are complete.

The PN deputy leader has said that if Busuttil asks him to step down he will have no qualm in resigning.