LIVE: Compilation of evidence against Muscat & Co

11:05 | We now encounter a technical problem from the prosecution’s end – they haven’t summoned enough witnesses to fill the time slot which magistrate Rachel Montebello allocated to today’s hearing.

The next hearings will take place on 13 November, 09:30, and 21 November, 10:00.

Thanks for following!

---

11:00 | George Gregory, former managing partner of RSM, is the next witness. We’ve already heard Gregory – whose firm audits the ruling party’s accounts – testify about how he was one of the key government appointees on the steering and evaluation committees, though we hadn’t learned much from it given that he claimed to hardly recall any of the crucial details he was asked to recall.

Today, the prosecution is going through the motions of asking Gregory about his former involvement in the hospitals concession project. Again, his memory sounds particularly faulty, considering he claims that he does not even remember whether it was Konrad Mizzi or someone from Projects Malta who had appointed him to his role.

Facing further questioning, the witness briefly explains that it was the negotiation committee and the bidder who were responsible for ironing out the initial draft of the deal, after which the deal went through the steering committee and finally, through Cabinet.

He says there were several meetings held throughout the summer which led to the closure of the deal. The witness says that RSM Malta received an engagement letter from Projects Malta when it was first roped in, though he does not remember who had appointed his firm.

Cross-examination of the witness – defence lawyer Edward Gatt asks about who provided technical expertise related to healthcare. CEOs of Gozo General and MDH CEO of the time were leaned on as the de facto experts, along with another individual named Charles Grixti.

He is also asked about who set the fees which the government would pay the concessionaire per bed, and repeats that it was subject to negotiation between the government and the bidder. Ram Tumuluri, Deborah Ann Chappell were among those involved in these negotiations from the bidder’s end.

Defence lawyer Stefano Filletti now takes over cross-examination. He asks Gregory whether there was a specific Bluestone Special Solutions representative which served as the government’s counterpart in these negotiations. The witness says he does not recall any specific individuals.

Filletti now asks about the financial package of the deal and how it was established. The witness confirms that there was a fixed rate set to be paid out for the first two years (throughout the construction phase of the project), after which rates were to be paid per bed.

“The money that went from the government to the concessionaire – how was that approved?” the defence asks.

The witness explains that the fixed fees were levied according to what would be needed to run the three hospitals in question. The witness says that this funding was meant to be used solely for the construction phase of the project. The defence concludes its cross-examination, and the witness steps off the stand.

---

10:45 | Wait is now explaining how the workload was divided into streams, referring to different groups of individuals who were appointed to evaluate and adjudicate the deal. He now refers to Cabinet and how the final decision on what to make of the evaluation report rested with the government.

The prosecution asks why Projects Malta’s role was so limited, and the witness says that the agency was too small at the time to handle such a massive tender with its own personnel and resources.

“Who decided that Projects Malta’s role should be limited to an administrative one?”, magistrate Rachel Montebello asks the witness.

“I don’t know why,” the witness replies, saying that he was not aware of the instructions which led to the formation of the agency as it stood at the time.

The prosecution asks Wait to confirm who took over after he left his role, and he refers to James Camenzuli. The minister in charge of Projects Malta at the time was disgraced former health minister Konrad Mizzi. The prosecution is done with questioning, and the witness now answers questions from the defence.

Defence lawyer Stefano Filletti asks the witness to further explain Projects Malta’s administrative role. Wait says that his agency’s role consisted of providing procurement-related legal support to the committees which fell under its remit.

Ganado Advocates, RSM, Beat Consultants – the witness confirms these three private entities were subcontracted by the agency he formerly headed to flesh out the procurement criteria of the project. We’ve already heard testimonies from representatives on behalf all three entities, all of whom had provided legal and technical support at various stages of the project.

The witness steps off the stand.

---

10:30 | Today’s first witness is William Wait, former Projects Malta CEO. The prosecution begins questioning of the witness by asking about his background.

He explains that Projects Malta was created to promote public-private partnerships. Wait describes Projects Malta as the administrator of the hospitals concession on behalf of the Maltese government.

We’ve heard from Wait before during the prima facie evidence stage. In his previous testimony, he had refused to take any kind of personal responsibility for the decisions that Projects Malta took in relation to the concession since he was not involved in day-to-day operations and Projects Malta’s sole responsibility was to administer – not evaluate – the deal. In fact, he had argued that the buck stops with Cabinet.

In today’s hearing, Wait’s answers to the prosecution’s questions about what Projects Malta’s role consisted of is more of the same – he refers to the committees which were set up to adjudicate the deal and says refuses to outline what the agency’s role consisted of in more detail.

---

10:23 | Good Morning, live from Hall 22. The compilation of evidence against disgraced former prime minister Joseph Muscat and his associates and colleagues continues. Magistrate Rachel Montebello does the roll call.

Defence lawyer Edward Gatt informs the court that his client, disgraced former chief of staff Keith Schembri, is unable to attend today’s hearing. The defence is to present medical certificates to attest to this.

Clarence John Conger-Thompson, Steward’s former IT specialist, is also unavailable and has been exempted by the court. Adrian Hillman is also not present.