OPM tightens grip on this year’s ‘Mużika, Mużika’ as spending exceeds €2 million

This year’s edition of Mużika, Mużika, which kicks off today, is already mired in controversy after revelations that the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) has taken direct control of the festival, sidelining established structures while presiding over a surge in public spending that sources say has exceeded €2 million.

The three-day Maltese song festival, held at the MFCC and promoted as a celebration of local music, is officially organised by Festivals Malta. However, sources close to the event told The Shift that the designated organising committee, chaired by Ray Bugeja, has effectively been reduced to a “rubber stamp”, with key decisions being taken at Castille.

At the centre of the operation is Aaron Zahra, chairman of Festivals Malta and Prime Minister Robert Abela’s events coordinator at Castille. Despite holding no executive procurement powers, Zahra is understood to have personally negotiated deals with suppliers across all aspects of the festival, including venue arrangements, stage production, lighting, sound, presenters, and entertainment.

Sources said the committee was routinely presented with decisions that had already been taken, bypassing normal procedures and internal oversight mechanisms.

This centralisation of control has coincided with a sharp escalation in costs, with expenditure far exceeding the budget originally approved by the Finance Ministry.

The festival has already served as a way to dish out direct orders and to fuel uncontrolled spending in past years.

The latest data published in the Government Gazette and analysed by The Shift shows that last year’s edition has been characterised by extensive use of direct orders.

Around 20 such orders were issued for the festival, distributing roughly €500,000 among a small group of suppliers, many of whom had links to the Labour Party or government structures.

Among the beneficiaries were companies frequently engaged for government and Labour Party events, including Mad About Video, Best Team Audio, TEC, and RVC.

Their involvement in this year’s festival has again fuelled concerns that public funds were being used to sustain a network of preferred contractors ahead of a looming electoral campaign.

In 2025, the spending spree extended beyond production costs.

Presenters Keith Demicoli, Claire Agius and Moira Delia – the last two now axed – were each paid €7,500, while comedian Ray Calleja received €7,000 for a guest appearance.

Other notable payments included €80,000 to Gerald Agius Ordway for technical project management.

Additional contracts revealed further expenditure on services ranging from camera work (€11,000) to TV equipment and crew (€78,000), as well as scriptwriting fees exceeding €5,000.

Direct orders were also used to engage various communications personnel, with €120,000 allocated to two officers and €9,000 paid to former Labour candidate Felix Busuttil in a supporting role.

Questions sent to Zahra about whether he had negotiated contracts directly and approved spending without formal authority went unanswered.

This year, the organisers also made sure to have Prime Minister Robert Abela and his wife, Lydia, among the audience during Saturday’s final session.