The Governor of the Central Bank, former finance minister Edward Scicluna, is refusing to answer questions on whether Amanda Muscat, the girlfriend of Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo, was seconded to the ministry from the Central Bank.
The Shift revealed last week that the tourism minister’s girlfriend was given a phantom government job as a person of trust at the Gozo Ministry, in a deliberate attempt to save the minister from an investigation on unethical behaviour, as happened with former education minister Justyne Caruana and Daniel Bogdanovic.
The Shift is informed that Muscat is originally an employee of the Central Bank and may still be on its books. But the Central Bank Governor refused to reply to questions.
Scicluna blocked all information about Amanda Muscat, claiming that “these questions cannot be acceded to since the Bank is precluded at law from disclosing personal data”.
Legal sources told The Shift that Scicluna’s reply “is just an excuse” as the name of an employee is not considered to be private data and does not fall under GDPR rules.
The shift has now filed an official FOI request to obtain the necessary information.
Multiple senior government sources informed The Shift that Muscat was employed at the Central Bank a few years ago as a clerk and was promoted rapidly to an assistant to one of the deputy governors and put on a salary grade of a supervisor.
In 2020, when Clayton Bartolo was made parliamentary secretary for financial services and the digital economy by Robert Abela, Muscat immediately joined his private office as his personal secretary. The sources also confirmed that Bartolo started dating Muscat soon after she started working for him.
Despite the clear ethical problem that developed by having a cabinet member in a formal relationship with his private secretary, Bartolo still kept Muscat in his office and only decided to take action when Justyne Caruana was in the eye of the storm.
In a clear attempt to avoid any media attention over his personal situation, Muscat was shifted to the Gozo Minister’s private secretariat on a person of trust basis. The communications aide at the ministry denied this despite clear evidence being published.
Muscat never turned up for work at the Gozo Ministry, according to colleagues, but kept providing services at her boyfriend’s ministry, including his constituency office.
Asked last week about the latest ‘abuse’ by one of his cabinet members, Prime Minister Robert Abela declared that “the issue was closed” and claimed that the Minister’s girlfriend is no longer working at any government ministry.
So far, neither the prime minister nor Minister Bartolo has replied to questions on where Amanda Muscat currently working. And neither would the Central Bank Governor.
Independent candidate Arnold Cassola has asked the Standards Commissioner to investigate the case.
Sign up to our newsletter Stay in the know
"*" indicates required fields
‘Joseph Muscat knew Keith Schembri wanted Caruana Galizia dead’ – Yorgen Fenech
Court bans Nikki Dimech for life as auditor warrant remains on official register
Muscat’s phantom hospital and the network behind it
Ta’ Xbiex Marina developers turn to Portelli-style planning manoeuvre to overcome court ruling
Tags
#Amanda Muscat
#Central Bank Governor
#Daniel Bogdanovic
#Edward Scicluna
#employment
#Justyne Caruana
#nepotism
#tourism minister Clayton Bartolo
Other News
‘Joseph Muscat knew Keith Schembri wanted Caruana Galizia dead’ – Yorgen Fenech
Court bans Nikki Dimech for life as auditor warrant remains on official register
Muscat’s phantom hospital and the network behind it
Ta’ Xbiex Marina developers turn to Portelli-style planning manoeuvre to overcome court ruling
Why should parents have to fight for the obvious?
UN envoy Vanessa Frazier fronts commercial gym adverts, raising eyebrows
Malta has slowest justice in EU as criminal cases take 11 years on average to conclude
‘You have no balls to tell the truth’ – Caruana Galizia’s commissioned murderer tells middleman Theuma
‘I lied about payment to police commissioner’ – Melvin Theuma
Four bidders battle for St Philip’s Hospital as court tells Official Receiver to pick winner
Pardoned middleman admits lying about Schembri, police commissioner
Edward Scicluna knows that his Ministry (Finance Ministry) approved the 17,000 euro monthly retainer to Robert Abela from the Planning Authority. Join the dots.
Some people simply forget that they have to carefully manage the property of the Maltese. Instead, they think that it is a self-service store for their greedy needs.
So shameful and vile.
That is probably why we now say Robber Abela?
How does The Shift dare expect that Scicluna confirms or otherwise that Clayton?s girlfriend is shielded as a CBM employee? And then if he loses favour with the Government and he is made to resign and loses his salary package? Has not he already first sacrificed his Brussels package and then his Ministerial salary? How will he cope with the cost of living if he loses the salary he gave himself as the last act as Minister for Finance before resigning? Ma tarax.
The issue was closed, or so said Bobby!
how? By paying her a government salary for running her boyfriend?s personal office???
What does the central Bank of Malta? Without a local currency,such central Bank is totally useless and all its members should be fired.
No surprises with Edward Scicluna. When he was supposed to be Finance Minister, his job was to shield the corruption taking place by the government.
TAF TISTHI SCILUNA. Veru wiccek bla zejt u ilna nafuh minn meta irrangajt il-paga qabel ma hadt postok fil-Bank Centrali. Tahdem ghal Malta u l-haddiem SABIH; tahdem imma ghal butek u but shabek il-KORROTTI.
ANOTHER UNTRUSTWORTHY LABOURITE, EDWARD SCICLUNA.