The PN have announced a scheme through which investors who wish to help the PN raise money to pay its very considerable debts running into millions, can do this by lending €10,000 to the PN at an annual compounded interest of four per cent.

Both the capital and interest accrued is supposed to be paid back when the 10-year periodis up.

I believe that this scheme is an attempt to circumvent the party financing law which has been passed in Parliament very recently. The reason being that under this law only “donations” of a certain amount of money (above €7,000) must be registered and the names published.

The party financing law, as far as I know, does not cover “loans” given at a commercial rate of interest, such as the scheme launched by the PN. Hence the names of those who “invest” in this scheme will remain a secret.

When one remembers the harsh criticism unleashed by Simon Busuttil and the PN about the foreign applicants to the Individual Investment Programme, and whose names are published in the Government Gazette together with all other individuals who are granted Maltese citizenship, one can only wonder how on earth Busuttil dares talks about “transparency”and “honest politics” when they have devised a scheme which is precisely doing the contrary .

As I had argued in this newspaper some time ago, “talk is cheap”.

One question which springs to mind is whether the MFSA has authorised this scheme or not, since, just like any other investment scheme, there is no guarantee that the investors will not lose a part, if not all, of their money, if the PN is not in a position to pay back the capital together with the compunded interest at the end of the 10-year period.