The procurement process and the contractors involved in the resurfacing of arterial roads in the run-up to the Commonwealth summit are shrouded in secrecy, with the government not forthcoming on the matter.
Information tabled in Parliament last January by Transport Minister Joe Mizzi in reply to a question from Opposition MP Marthese Portelli showed that these works cost taxpayers close to €11 million. This was far in excess of the Budget allocation for the works, which was €2.75 million.
The original allocation was practically used just to resurface parts of the arterial roads leading to a Golden Bay hotel which hosted several heads of state, who last November were in Malta for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.
In his parliamentary reply, the minister made no mention of the original Budget allocation, but said that the works had been financed through the “2014 framework agreement”, of which he gave no details.
No reply was given about whether the contracts had been awarded by direct order or following a tendering process
Mr Mizzi added that the works had been allocated to “established” contractors in the field, but no names were divulged. Furthermore, no reply was given about whether the contracts had been awarded by direct order or following a tendering process, even though he was explicitly requested to table such information.
Research carried out by this newspaper showed that the framework agreement was signed in 2014 between Transport Malta and 32 contractors, with the aim of accelerating the construction and maintenance of roads.
The Times of Malta sent questions to the ministry requesting the contractors’ names, procurement process and a clarification of the overall cost of the summit works.
In its reply, the ministry said that these works had been funded through a number of (unspecified) Budget votes and not just the original €2.75 million allocation.
“Some of these budgets were in fact revised specifically due to the anticipated increased road works,” it said.
Nevertheless questions related directly to the procurement process and the names of the contractors remained unanswered.