Keith Schembri’s lawyer appointed chairman of Malita by Owen Bonnici

Lawyer Mark Vassallo, who represents disgraced former OPM chief of staff Keith Schembri and serves as PBS company secretary, has been appointed chairman of Malita Investments, the government-controlled property company now under Minister Owen Bonnici’s responsibility.

Vassallo replaces Roderick Psaila, whose tenure lasted less than seven months, as Malita faces depleted cash reserves, suspended shareholder dividends and unfinished affordable housing developments.

A company announcement states that the government exercised its rights as majority shareholder to replace Psaila as non-executive director and chairman, effective 1 September.

The government appointed Vassallo as a director from the same date. The board subsequently appointed him non-executive chairman.

The announcement gives no reason for removing Psaila, who took office on 3 February.

The replacement was publicly announced nine days after taking effect.

Vassallo’s partisan appointment brings a lawyer with established connections to senior Labour figures into another public-sector position within Bonnici’s ministerial remit.

Apart from representing Schembri, Vassallo has represented former minister Konrad Mizzi in proceedings connected with the hospitals concession.

His broadcasting connections extend beyond legal work.

Contemporary reporting identified him as part of Where’s Everybody, the production business formerly associated with Lou Bondì.

In 2013, the company announced a restructuring under which Mark and PJ Vassallo would focus on production and broadcasting.

Vassallo later served as PBS board secretary and legal adviser, including during Bonnici’s responsibility for public broadcasting.

The Shift reported in 2022 that he directed Labour election broadcasts transmitted on ONE while holding his PBS position, raising questions about the overlap between party broadcasting and his responsibilities at the state broadcaster.

PBS refused The Shift’s request for his contract, remuneration and applicable code of ethics.

In 2023, The Shift also reported that Vassallo led PBS’s legal resistance to disclosing executive chairman Mark Sammut’s contract. The Information and Data Protection Commissioner and the appeals tribunal ruled in favour of disclosure.

Vassallo, who has no business experience, now takes over a company whose cash reserves fell from €6.4 million to €1.8 million during the first six months of 2026.

Malita recorded an operating cash outflow of €1.1 million, compared with an inflow of €13 million during the corresponding period a year earlier.

Directors withheld the interim dividend after reviewing cash flows and committed capital expenditure. Administrative expenses nevertheless rose by 31%, reaching €1.5 million.

The company’s affordable housing programme had already suffered suspended works after funding difficulties left contractors awaiting payment.

Former chairwoman Marlene Mizzi accused former housing minister Roderick Galdes of interference. Galdes denied interfering, while the board maintained its decisions were independent.

The government owns 81.94% of Malita, leaving private shareholders exposed to decisions over which the state exercises decisive control.

The appointment disclosure identifies Vassallo’s outside activity as a lawyer. It does not explain what experience qualified him to oversee Malita’s property portfolio, financing pressures and unfinished developments.