Minister Galdes ousts Malita Chair as electoral fraud scandal unfolds

Housing Minister Roderick Galdes has requested that former Labour MEP Marlene Mizzi be removed from Chair of Malita Investments, one of the government entities implicated in electoral fraud and gerrymandering in Siggiewi.

The Shift is informed that Galdes and Mizzi disagreed about how the government’s financial vehicle company conducted its business.

As a result, Galdes ordered that the former Labour MEP be removed from her €24,000-a-year part-time role and replaced by someone closer to the minister.

It is unclear whether Marlene Mizzi’s removal from the top job at Malita Investments is related to the ongoing election fraud scandal.

Malita Investments plc is a company where the government has a majority stake and invests in affordable housing.

It is currently embroiled in a scandal after the Court heard how several individuals were coerced by government officials to make false declarations to have their ID cards transferred to unfinished apartments so that they could vote in Siggiewi, Housing Minister Roderick Galdes’ constituency.

Siggiewi is a highly contested locality. A few votes can decide which party will take the locality’s mayorship for the coming years.

Following a case presented by the PN, the Court identified Malita Investments and Identity Malta as the government entities coordinating this fraud by arranging the change of ID cards of several people who had been promised an apartment in  Siggiewi so they could vote at the locality in June’s elections.

In court, officials from Identity Malta said under oath that their instructions came directly from Jennifer Falzon, the CEO of Malita Investments.

However, in a company announcement, the Board of Malita and Falzon refuted any suggestion that they were involved in this electoral fraud. They asked the Police Commissioner to investigate the Identity Malta officials who made these claims.