Gozo ministry tasks hunters with bird-ringing amid raft of direct orders

The controversial Federation of Hunters and Trappers (FKNK) have been tasked by the Gozo Ministry with providing bird-ringing services for scientific research to the Wild Birds Regulation Unit.

The procurement, awarded through a direct order, is one of hundreds issued by the Gozo Ministry over the past twelve months, with total spending exceeding €2 million.

According to a list of direct orders published in the government gazette, the hunters’ federation was engaged after a competitive tender process failed to result in an award.

The decision has raised eyebrows among environmental groups, given the FKNK’s reputation and repeated instances in which some of its members engage in widespread illegal hunting practices – an assertion that the FKNK strenuously denies.

The contract forms part of a wider pattern of non-competitive procurement at the ministry.

Data covering the second half of 2024 and the first six months of 2025 reveal extensive reliance on direct orders, often involving repeat beneficiaries and contracts deliberately structured just below the €10,000 threshold that would otherwise require an open tender.

Among the most prominent beneficiaries is Citadel Video Communications (CVC), a media production company owned by Alvin Scicluna and his son George, a cousin of Gozo minister Clint Camilleri.

The company has received tens of thousands of euros in direct orders in recent months, continuing a decades-long relationship with successive governments.

In addition to these contracts, CVC has also secured ministry-funded sponsorships for programmes it produces for the public broadcaster, PBS – a practice that may amount to illegal double state aid.

One example is a €7,000 sponsorship for ‘Għawdex Illum’, a programme already funded by PBS and produced by CVC.

Other PBS-linked figures also feature on the ministry’s list of direct orders.

Keith Chetcuti, the chief executive of the public broadcaster, received several contracts through his private events company, iCAN Ltd, including a €25,000 direct order to provide interpretation services during a conference in Gozo.

Quinton Scerri, a current affairs presenter on PBS’s, called ‘Popolin’, was awarded a €41,000 direct order through his company, NRGY Concepts Ltd, to host an international food festival on the island.

PBS’s code of ethics prohibits current affairs presenters from engaging in government contracts.

The list further includes nearly €200,000 in repetitive payments to Tal-Fuklar Folk Group, a small Gozitan NGO, for the “management” of the Xewkija windmill. Payments were reportedly issued every two weeks, each falling just below the tender threshold.

Claude Mallia was also awarded direct orders exceeding €30,000 to provide architectural services to the ministry.

Additional contracts include a €100,000 direct order to G7 Services Ltd, owners of the government-friendly media outlet MaltaDaily, to organise an annual end-of-year event; repeated direct orders for security services; payments for office rentals from religious institutions; and the €20,121 purchase of a painting from Obelisk Auctions.

The National Audit Office has repeatedly censured the Gozo Ministry for its irregular procurement practices. Despite these warnings, the ministry continues to flout procurement rules with apparent impunity.