A loss to the new generation of graduates (2)

Labour MP Carmelo Abela's recent comments are less than convincing on a number of counts especially to those readers who, like myself, seek consistency in his actions. The public should look into Mr Abela's record as to when he had suspicions of financial irregularities in the Malta Restoration Centre.

In such a case, Mr Abela took the rare step of lodging a protest in the Magistrates' Court and instigated a magisterial inquiry into the matter. In this case he has done no such thing, he has presented no facts: not to Parliament, not to the Magistrates' Court, not to the public. I invite him to do so (if he has any facts to offer) for I have absolutely no fear of the facts. I am also perfectly capable of dealing with malicious interpretation of any facts (though I am not accusing Mr Abela of such interpretation).

Mr Abela reiterated "a suspicion I still have, that even the government is not happy with the way the MCR was run" yet fails to spot the glaring inconsistency in his own argument. If it was simply a case of the government not being happy with the way MCR was run then all the government would have needed to do is change captains, change the people running the show. If, as Mr Abela seems to be trying hard to imply, "the problem was Cannataci" then there would have been no need for mergers. Just change Dr Cannataci or whoever else Mr Abela or his colleagues deem so inept. This is not what is happening and in his reply Mr Abela dodges the real question posed by the conclusion of my letter that is, "How did the parliamentary debate properly examine whether this merger creates huge unacceptable risks of loss of academic direction, mission focus, impetus, creativity, identity and capacity-building". Mr Abela would have gone up a couple of notches in everybody's esteem had he tackled this subject but, like so many others, he neglected to do so.

Mr Abela stated "it was the government which proposed this merger, after acknowledging that the MCR was not properly run". Would Mr Abela kindly enlighten readers as to when and where the government acknowledged that MCR was not properly run since I can find no trace of such acknowledgement?

Mr Abela then states: "I do not think that the way that for example the Ikonos funds were handled is also 'pure speculation'". Has any reader understood what Mr Abela is getting at? Because I have not. What is Mr Abela's precise allegation? What exactly was wrong about the way the Ikonos funds were handled? Or is Mr Abela trying to sow doubt once he knows that in the newspaper he is shorn of his parliamentary privilege and can be sued for libel if he makes any false allegations?

When Mr Abela chooses to come out from behind the wall of parliamentary privilege and make a clear, precise accusation, I will be delighted to answer as may be appropriate... and sue him if so warranted. Unless and until he does so, my categorical statement is that Ikonos funds were properly administered with great care and that Mr Abela's insinuations are nothing but idle speculation.

As for telling it to the European Commission, as Mr Abela suggests, I read that a reporter from The Times independently did just that and was told that no inquiries are under way. Also, the public should be informed that until the very last month when I was Ikonos project director, in March 2005, the European Commission was happy enough with the project to grant it an extension to December 2005. Mr Abela should know that this would not have happened had anything been wrong with the way Ikonos finances were being handled.

Mr Abela concludes his latest letter by stating that "I do appreciate the financial loss that Dr Cannataci suffered because of this merger. But arguments need to be brought forward not for his interest but for the country's interest". Once again, it appears that Mr Abela is grossly misinformed and jumps to the wrong conclusions.

The merger of MCR and Heritage Malta in July 2005 could not and did not bring any financial loss to myself for a number of reasons. Chief of these was the fact that my term of office was due to expire in late April 2005 and in 2004 I had indicated, both verbally and in writing, that I was not seeking re-appointment as chairman.

It is precisely because of the country's interest that I expect Mr Abela, in Parliament and outside, to explore the issues regarding the threatened loss of academic direction, mission focus and credibility posed by the merger, something which may threaten MCR's ability to attract extramural funding from sources such as EU projects. Such projects were already creating employment for Maltese graduates in archaeology, history of art, psychology, IT and conservation. Perhaps Mr Abela fails to see their merit in creating interesting and exciting job prospects in areas where otherwise jobs are quite scarce. This, in addition to the intrinsic research value of such projects. Mr Abela has failed to publicly examine whether the academic direction which generated such opportunities may now be threatened by the merger. He has apparently failed to realise that it is the financial interests of this new generation of Maltese graduates which may be affected by the merger and not mine.

Many readers must, like myself, wonder why all these personal attacks are launched when somebody like the undersigned takes time off from the rest of his life and career to devote time and energy in the public interest, such as was the case in setting up MCR from scratch. Quite frankly, I don't know the precise answer to that question. I can only make some informed guesses.

If some readers are of the school of thought that "there is no smoke without a fire" I can only assure them that there was no fire in MCR's accounts, projects or management for as long as I was chairman. Life has taught me much however about a dangerous, highly inflammable cocktail made with a varied blend of ingredients such as simple jealousy, professional jealousy, misplaced pride, ignorance, political expediency and ineptitude.

These ingredients, singly or together, do sometimes cause smoldering fires in the hearts of some individuals who then directly or indirectly foster a good deal of trouble. When the green-eyed monster raises its head, it does so in a variety of ways.

I do not exclude the possibility of certain civil servants or politicians being upset by the fact that, under my chairmanship, MCR managed to do things in months which they had not managed to do in years. I likewise do not exclude the possibility of a tiny number of disgruntled ex-employees with an axe to grind in an attempt at fomenting trouble with half-truths or untruths.

While I have learnt that some people may be seriously warped by the politics of envy, I take this opportunity to categorically declare that I do not believe Mr Abela to be such a person. Nor do I include him in any of the categories I have just alluded to. On the few occasions I met Mr Abela I found him to be extremely courteous and genuinely motivated in the subject under discussion. I do not exclude the possibility, however, that he is being deliberately or unintentionally misinformed and I invite him to carefully double-check the facts of the case to ensure that he is not being unfair to a number of people including myself.

Dr Cannataci was appointed by the University of Malta as chairman of the Board of Governors of the Malta Centre for Restoration between May 1999 and March 2005.