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Manuel Mallia to sue Paul Borg Olivier, seeks imprisonment for defamation
Mallia - “I am asking for imprisonment because this country needs to know that nobody can defame somebody for any reason they like.”
23 February 2013, 12:00am
Miriam Dalli
Miriam Dalli
3 min read
Labour candidate and lawyer Manuel Mallia has announced criminal steps against Nationalist secretary-general Paul Borg Olivier after he was accused by finance minister Tonio Fenech of involvement in the Enemalta fuel procurement scandal.
Mallia and Labour candidate David Farrugia Sacco were accused by Fenech of having been privy to any suspicious activity by an oil trader, as legal counsels to the plaintiffs in a civil lawsuit they launched against George Farrugia, hinting at them as the sources of a story first broken in the independent media.
"I am asking for the imprisonment [of Borg Olivier] because this country needs to know that nobody can defame somebody for any reason they like," Mallia declared.
Imprisonment is still the highest form of punishment in Malta for criminal defamation.
Farrugia Sacco also confirmed he would be seeking legal action against the PN for defamation.
Mallia was appointed as a legal counsel in September 2010 by the Farrugias of the John's Group, in a civil lawsuit against their brother George Farrugia for allegedly siphoning €6 million in oil revenues from family business Powerplan to his trading company Aikon Ltd.
"Tonio Fenech claims I am 'behind the oil scandal'. But I declare that I was never aware of the Trafigura invoices before they were published by MaltaToday... I reiterate that I knew nothing of the oil commissions case before the story broke in MaltaToday," Mallia said - referring to the alleged kickbacks paid to a former Enemalta consultant who has been charged for corruption in court.
The case is separate from the Powerplan lawsuit presented in April 2012 against George Farrugia and his wife.
Mallia said he was approached by ambassador Anthony de Bono to take up the case for the John's Group, and that his appointment is minuted in a company resolution dated 20 September, 2010, which he read out: "This appointment relates specifically to the appropriation of funds by George Farrguia against [Powerplan] and related vendors."
Mallia said he was not, as alleged by Fenech, the legal counsel on an IT investigative audit carried out FST Consulting, the firm of Labour candidate David Farrugia Sacco. "It was wrong of him to say I was involved in this audit," Mallia said.
The same audit by FST Consulting accused Intershore Fiduciary Services - the nominee directors of Aikon Ltd before George Farrugia assumed its official directorship in January 2011 - of "being an accomplice" in Aikon's fraudulent activity.
Mallia said he had not informed the Labour Party of this matter, specifically because one of Intershore's three directors was Labour's financial controller Joe Cordina, who has now resigned the party post and also withdrawn his candidature on the Gozo district.
On his part, Farrugia Sacco denied having passed any information on the civil lawsuit, and that his brother Stephen Farrugia Sacco had anything to do with the IT audit report. "Fenech quoted from the investigative report... my brother was not involved but his advice was sought on how the report should be prepared for the courts. My brother never examined the computers or read the emails.
"[IT expert] Geoffrey Farrugia confirms he carried out the IT audit without the contribution of Stephen, who limited his role to the format of the report. My brother was not even called as a witness in court... the reason the report says it was drawn up 'in conjunction' with my brother is probably down to an act of courtesy."
Miriam Dalli joined MaltaToday.com.mt in 2010 becoming assistant editor f...
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Prosit Dr Mallia....u intant id druck pusher tal kazin tal PL ta Hal Safi hallejtuh jigri barra!!!
Ara veru ma tafux tisthu
Priscilla Darmenia •
Dr Mallia I ask you that if the case is put off till after the elections and should Dr PBO apologise, please continue with the case without giving a pardon. We need a landmark decision to have cleaner politics in the future. Politicians should not be above the law and allowed to slander and throw mud left, right and centre to Tom, Dick and Harry and get away with it.
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Suppost kampanja elettorali tkun glieda min se jaghmel l-aktar gid ghall-pajjiz mhux kulhadd jaghmel l-almu tieghu biex ihammeg lil tan-naha l-ohra. Igri jghaddi kollox!
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Dear Miriam Dalli,
So you censored my piece. So much for freedom of speech. Bloody puerile and pathetic. Seems you are allergic to Dr.Mallia.
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@Mike Farrugia: Min jaf jekk inti tigi imhammeg bil-mod li qed jaghmlu GONZIPN b'kull disrispett lejn l-integrita tieghek tirreagixxix l-istess u tmur tigri ghand Avukat sabiex tiehu sodisfazzjon. U izjed u izjed Dr Mallia li qed jigi imputat li ma svelax xi sigriet professjonali meta l-ewwel principju fundamentali tal-Avukatura, u protett mill-Kostituzzjoni u mill-Ligi hu li avukat qatt ma jista jizvela informazzjoni moghtija lilu minn Klijent. Izjed u izjed meta Dr Mallia stqarr publikament li hu qatt ma kien a konoxxenza ta' informazzjoni sensitiva. Li thammeg persuna integra hi l-aktar haga moqzieza li tista taghmel.
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U ajma, mhux intom bdejtu bl-akkuzi foloz kontra Austin Gatt?! L'aqwa li thammgu n-nazzjonalisti! Mhux hekk taghmlu kull elezzjoni? Issa drajnikhom. U l-ahhar wahda konta Tonio Fenech, li George Farrugia qal lill-pulizija illi tah arlogg ta 5000 ewro, mhix falza ukoll. Qabda ipokriti!
U b'liema pompozita' jitkellem dan Mallia? Jahseb li ser jimpressjonana? Jimpressjona biss ghax ifakkarna fil-Labour il-qadim ... ghax filfatt xejn ma nbidel!
Priscilla Darmenia •
It would be wonderful if Paul Borg Olivier will receive a jail sentence. This will be a precedence and politicians, who pretending they are immune and above the law, will be careful how they throw mud at others.
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Try as they might, the PN just cannot shove their blame on to someone else. This is not a question of who knew what and when, and/or what one professionally carried out or when. THESE QUESTIONS AND SCENARIOS ARE SIMPLY SMOKESCREENS FOR THE COMMITTED ACTS OF GROSS CORRUPTION UNDER THEIR WATCH! If the PN's Strategy group believe we will be taken in, they are in for a huge surprise. Moreover, the more the PN, that had been in Government for practically the past 25 years, keeps harping along these lines the more unbiased, uncommitted voter/citizens it will lose to the PL. Of course, the trick might very well be that the Strategy group are after their lost sheep. The ones that vowed that will either not vote, or vote for other parties. But even here, those intelligent enough to have reached that mind frame will be unlikely to be taken in!
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Ms. Dalli those who play with fire get their hands burnt. PBO is going to get a very nasty burn. A lawyer worth his salt is very sensitive regarding his personal and professional reputation and integrity. Now Dr. Mallia is one of the island’s top briefs. He is at the top because he always behaved impeccably as a lawyer and as a private citizen.
PBO wants to tarnish Dr. Mallia’s reputation. If he is right he will be hailed with laurels. On the other-hand if he has made a faux pax than he has to pay his just deserts. As Dr.Mallia explained he is seeking the protection of the law. The law may contemplate prison as one of the various options, so what? It is really ludicrous and unjust that you take the stance of catch 22 with Dr.Mallia. If he loses the case a career spanning over 38 years will be finished if he is given satisfaction by the law he will be the villain as he will send PBO to prison. If this happens it is only PBO responsibility since he is jeopardising Dr. Mallia’s reputation. Being a lawyer PBO should have known what he was facing before putting pen to paper.
Anyway as always whatever happens, it is Labour’s fault.
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WELL DONE DR MALLIA. THEY DESERVE IMPRISONMENT ESPECIALLY SINCE THEY STOOP SO LOW AS TO DESTROY THE REPUTATION OF INNOCENT PEOPLE JUST FOR THE SAKE OF KEEPING ATTACHED TO POWER. AND NOW THEY HAVE DONE SUCH DESPICABLE DEEDS FOR MUCH TOO LONG. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.
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As Paul Borg Olivier and Tonio Fenech are hellbent on smearing as many people as possible in order to deviate attention from their predicament, I would like to publicly and solemnly declare that in the past I have worked with both RITA SCHEMBRI and FRANK SAMMUT, in the financial services sector and, yes, the three of us were in the same offices! Am I therefore also implicated in whatever they are implicated in?
ALBERT FENECH
Qawra
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I agree with Dr. Mallia about his stance in favour of imprisonment on people who defame other people. GonziPN want now to break the law and get scott free. How typical.
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PBO does not deserve imprisonment. That's for adults. He deserves to go back to school or a reformatory. It's the people that put him in his position that deserve to go to prison. Taking advantage of a feeble minded person should never be allowed. He shames his good family's name.
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So we're going to see half the Maltese cabinet in Jail!!! Dr Mallia did the worst mistake of his life, he entered the life of Politics, I dont think its his arena, he has no charisma with people. Unfortunately life in politics is like that.
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Kwereli u libelli galore bhalissa....erba snin okra jkunu nafu s-sentenzi. Issa drajniha din aa el cull elezzjoni generali. Once bitten, twice.....!
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Proset Dr Mallia, forsi tibda ssir gustizzja mhux bhal ma ilu jsir qabel kull elezzjoni, talPN ihammgu lil xi kandidat jew mexxej, imbaghad wara s-snin jitolbu skuza. Jew ghar minn hekk, kienu hammgu lil ex ministru Alfred Portelli fuq xi propjeta' u wara l-elezzjoni min kien qala' l- qlajja, li kien Pierre Portelli, l-anqas biss deher il-qorti biex jiggustifika. Grazzi forsi dan il-pajjiz jibda jitnaddaf
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Kummiedji. Issa tghaddi l-elezzjoni u jerghu jifthemu biex iwaqqghu il kazijiet pendenti kollha. Kulhaddl nesa kemm kien hemm libelli 5 snin ilu? Qatt ma smajna xejn izjed!
Rita Pizzuto •
Well done Dr Mallia. These people must be taught a lesson. The only problem is, that any such court case would not be called before the election, therefore they are being allowed to fire false accusations and harm the innocents, be they labour on even of their own colour so long as they can take an advantage until the day of reckoning. Their own people should by now have gotten used to them. Either you are part of the clan, or you are of no use. So after using them they throw out in the rubbish bin.
