Tista taqra dan l-artiklu bil-Malti.
Former Nationalist Party communications executive and TVM presenter Lou Bondi has denied his new contract as ‘policy consultant’ with the tourism ministry presented a conflict of interest despite his role as consultant to a major operator in the industry – DB Group.
His role with the tourism ministry came to light following questions in parliament by PN MP Darren Carabott, which revealed Bondi was reintegrated into the list of government advisers, this time as a person of trust for Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo.
Bondi previously had an annual consultancy contract with the government, but this was ended in 2020 after Prime Minister Robert Abela took over from disgraced former prime minister Joseph Muscat.
While it is an unspecified part-time contract, the role raises questions on whether this new role could be in conflict with another of his consultancy contracts with the Mellieħa-based DB Group, one of the country’s leading tourism operators.
The tourism minister’s constituency happens to be Mellieħa.
When asked by The Shift about a potential conflict of interest, Bondi said his advice to Bartolo is unrelated to policy.
“My remit is solely limited to giving technical advice on improving communications in the tourism sector. It has nothing to do with policy, let alone its execution,” Bondi said.
According to Bondi, the term the government used to describe his role – “policy consultant” – as specified in a list produced by the minister in parliament, is “the incorrect terminology” but “a standard nomenclature” used by the government for such political appointments.
He added that after pointing out the wrong terminology to the ministry, it was agreed that the word “policy” was removed from the contract. The contract is not publicly available.
He also confirmed he is still on the payroll of DB Group.
Bondi’s programmes on PBS during the PN administration led the Labour Party, then in opposition, to accuse him of bias. But he was immediately put on a government retainer when Joseph Muscat took power in 2013.
His €51,000 consultancy contract at the Office of the Prime Minister was renewed annually until 2020, when Abela became Labour leader.
During the 2020 Labour leadership campaign, Bondi was publicly accused by Abela’s supporters of helping Chris Fearne take over the leadership of the party. Fearne denied the claim, insisting it was designed to harm his campaign among Labour Party delegates.
Asked to declare his income from his latest political appointment, Bondi only said, “The remuneration is in line with the standard rate for this type of part-time services, which is established by the government manual.”
Bondi’s contract is not publicly available, and it is therefore not possible to ascertain his remuneration despite his reference to the “government manual”.
Conflict of interest, what’s that? The pigs at the trough have never heard of it and have no wish to?
Once Joseph Muscat told us that he would bring Lou Bondi feeding from the palm of his hand. After ten years Muscat is still feeding Bondi.
Conflicts of interest are both objective as well as subjective. Whilst a situation such as this one can be objectively conflicting without shadow of doubt, in order for the same situation to be subjectively conflicting will depend on the subject person’s character and his sense of decency or otherwise.
So in this case the subjective test is decisive.
Incredible the way things are done in this country, working with db who caters mostly for tourists and working as a consultant with the tourism ministry. Conflict of interest is not part of the vocabulary used in the contract but one has to find the real contract between the lines and in the small print. Oh I forgot the contract is not for public eyes!
His investment in giving the PL a helping hand in the 2013 election is still paying off hansomely.
Lou Bondi person of trust? It’s like saying the pope is Muslim!
It’s probably a case of different persons.
The contract with the Labour Ministry probably spells his name as Loo Bondi. That is how they knew him when he was mistrusted by Labour before 2013.
So it’s probably a case of two Bondis, one working for the operator, and the other one for the regulator. In that case they (the Bondis) have no conflicts of interest.