Government considers appointing Jesmond Saliba as VO Commissioner

Government is considering the appointment of Jesmond Saliba as Commissioner for Voluntary Organisations, following the resignation of the previous Commissioner this week.

In a statement issued on Friday, governent said that it is consulting with Parliament's Social Affairs Committee over the matter.

Saliba is on the Board of Directors of Dar tal-Providenza, and is a member of Fondazzjoni Sebħ and Save a Life. He is also a media strategist, having founded the communications company Corporate ID.

The previous Commissioner, Anthony Abela Medici, submitted his resignation this week in an incident that followed the withdrawal of an audit he requested from the National Audit Office over non-compliant NGOs.

MaltaToday revealed that Abela Medici, appointed to the post in 2018, was asked personally by parliamentary secretary Clifton Grima to withdraw a request to the NAO to carry out an audit of some 1,900 annual returns from NGOs whose annual returns had not been vetted.

When faced with questions to explain the reason for such a personal intervention, a spokesperson for Grima would not justify the unorthodox request. “The Parliamentary Secretariat thanks Dr Abela Medici for all his work within the Voluntary Sector and wishes him the best for his future endeavours. The NAO is an independent institution, thus questions about the NAO should be directed to them."

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