Health Minister Chris Fearne’s campaign manager Carmen Ciantar has tendered her ‘suspension’ following bribery allegations in Pakistani media
FMS CEO Carmen Ciantar tenders suspension, denies VGH-linked bribery allegations
Ciantar, the CEO of the Foundation for Medical Services (FMS), said tendering her suspension from that role was no admission of guilt on her part.
Daily Pakistan reported on Wednesday that she received €443,500 from Gozo International Medicare Ltd between October 2015 and February 2016.
The now defunct company was linked to Vitals Global Healthcare – the original concessionaire to run St Luke’s, Karin Grech, and Gozo General hospitals.
The news portal said the first payment to Ciantar came six weeks before Vitals Global Healthcare was granted the controversial hospitals concession.
At that time, she was still chief executive of the utility billing company ARMS, which had no links to the hospitals concession.
Carmen Ciantar was only appointed CEO of the FMS in July 2016 by Chris Fearne after he became health minister instead of Konrad Mizzi.
The Shift revealed in January that her €163,000 FMS contract had not been revised downward, as Prime Minister Robert Abela instructed in 2022.
Ciantar writes to Fearne
“Following the media report I am tendering my suspension to be in a position to defend my position”, she wrote to the health minister in a letter published by the government.
“I will definitely reserve my rights at law through my legal counsel. I am doing this in the interest of the ministry and the government and this decision is in no shape or form any admission of guilt on my part. I will take all my legal measures at my disposal to defend my name and my integrity.”
