AIMS director who branded minister ‘unfit for purpose’ operating without contract or job description

Ryan Borg, the former chief of staff to Education Minister Clifton Grima, who privately described his former boss as “not fit for purpose”, is operating as a director at the Authority for Integrity in Maltese Sport (AIMS) despite his contract expiring more than a year ago.

Information obtained by The Shift through a Freedom of Information request shows that Borg, who was recruited in 2022 as Director for Strategy and International Relations, was not issued a new contract after his original term elapsed in January 2025.

Despite this, Borg remains in post and is understood to be receiving a financial package of around €56,000 a year, even though no renewed contract has been signed.

The Shift is also informed that while Borg’s original contract entitled him to a 15% performance bonus tied to targets set out in his job description, no such job description appears to have ever existed.

Questions sent to AIMS CEO Kevin Azzopardi requesting a copy of Borg’s job description and any renewed contract went unanswered.

Borg was thrust into the spotlight in April 2025 when recordings of private phone conversations between him and a politically appointed AIMS consultant were leaked to the media.

In those conversations, Borg, who had served as Minister Grima’s chief aide, was heard repeatedly criticising his former boss, describing him as incompetent, aloof and “not fit for purpose”, while also alleging dysfunction within the ministry.

He claimed that most members of the minister’s secretariat were underqualified and frequently absent. He also disparaged his successor, Joe Filletti, saying he “can’t even write”.

Following the damaging leaks, Borg was immediately placed on forced leave by AIMS chairman Tonio Mizzi.

At the time, Borg publicly vowed to sue whoever leaked the recordings, describing the publication of the conversations as illegal and a breach of privacy. He warned that those responsible would “answer in court”.

Education Ministry sources say Borg had at one point been considered for the role of AIMS CEO, a post left vacant after the acrimonious departure of former Labour MP Jean Claude Micallef.

Micallef resigned amid tensions with AIMS chairman Tonio Mizzi, the husband of former Labour MEP Marlene Mizzi.

Ryan Borg is also a Labour local councillor in Sliema, which falls within the same electoral district contested by Minister Grima.