Former DCC Board member in breach of law over illicit car wash – MEPA

The Malta Environment and Planning Authority intends to revoke a permit issued in 2009 for a car wash in Triq Dun Karm in B'Kara and has asked the police to investigate the way the permit was issued by one of its former Development Control Commission (DCC) boards.

MEPA contends that Transport Malta employee and former Development Control Commission member Daniel Cordina was in breach of the law when he failed to inform a DCC board of his involvement as a Transport Malta employee in the processing of the same application.

A meeting set to revoke the permit had already been scheduled two weeks ago but was postponed following a court injunction presented by the applicant.

In September 2009 Cordina chaired the sitting of the meeting in lieu of the board's chairperson who declared an interest in the application.

Cordina had himself drafted plans issued by Transport Malta assessing the traffic impact of the same application which were presented to the same DCC board he chaired.

The car wash permit and the dubious role of the former DCC board member was  highlighted in last Sunday by it-Torca.

Contacted by MaltaToday, a MEPA spokesperson revealed that the Planning Directorate has been investigating the permit for the past weeks and is recommending that the permit should be revoked.

The MEPA spokesperson also distanced itself from the former DCC member deeming his actions as being in breach of the law.

"We are of the opinion that Cordina breached the provisions of the law, which obliges board members to declare any interest, direct or indirect in any matter on which they are to decide, and refrain from participating the discussion and the determination of the application," the  MEPA spokesperson told MaltaToday.

The MEPA spokesperson also revealed that MEPA "has referred the matter to the Police for it to investigate the case further."

The board chaired by Cordina had overturned a recommendation for refusal by the Planning Directorate because the local plan specifies that this zone can only be used for the development of sports facilities.

The board's justification for overturning this advice was that the development was set on a small part of the site and may be considered as an "ancillary facility".

The permit was approved unanimously by all 5 board members.

A spokesperson for MEPA revealed that over the past weeks the Planning Directorate has investigated this permit and concluded that MEPA board should revoke the permit.

In fact the revocation of this permit was to be discussed two weeks ago but on the day the MEPA board was going to discuss the permit, the applicant presented a court injunction.

Last week the request was turned down by the law courts and the case will be decided by the MEPA board in public on Thursday 20 September.

Daniel Cordina was one of the five DCC members appointed to the DCC by the Prime Minister a few days before the 2008 general election following the en masse resignation of the former DCC board following a scathing report by Mepa auditor Joe Falzon, which dealt with the way in which a permit for a supermarket in Safi had been approved.

The MEPA reform has abolished DCC boards composed by part-time architects who worked with other entities or as private practitioners and replaced them with full time boards whose members are not allowed to conduct any other work apart from deciding of pending permits.  One of the reasons cited for this reform was avoiding perceived or real conflict of interests.