Updated 1.30pm

Colleagues of the bus supervisor who claimed he was ordered to certify public buses that were not roadworthy, had reported “very similar” allegations to their union more than two months ago.

The allegations, reported at the beginning of February, corroborate what Claudio Cutajar claimed in a judicial protest on Tuesday, according to UĦM Voice of the Workers CEO Josef Vella.

“When it received the allegations, the union issued a directive to all its workers in the engineering department at Malta Public Transport to refuse obeying any order to certify a bus as roadworthy when it was not,” Vella said.

“The union had also demanded that MPT address this situation and were informed an investigation had been launched. But we haven’t yet heard back.”

Cutajar, who works at the public transport company as a supervisor responsible for certifying route buses after they have undergone repairs, said in a judicial protest he was threatened after he refused to certify the buses.

The public bus company categorically denied the allegations and said it would take legal action to defend its reputation.

UĦM Voice of the Workers CEO Josef Vella

But the union boss said Cutajar’s claims “corroborate those reported to the union more than two months ago”.

“The union will continue to work side by side with the workers and will hold meetings with the company management,” Vella added. “We also demand that the company informs us of the outcome of the internal investigation into the matter.”

Asked about the directives, a spokesperson for MPT confirmed that the union had sent an e-mail on February 2 stating “the UĦM is directing team supervisors not to release any buses which are not roadworthy even if they are ordered to do so”.

Sources told Times of Malta that after the judicial protest was filed on Tuesday, Cutajar was ordered by his superiors not to return to work. He is also facing disciplinary charges for gross misconduct.

The MPT spokesperson confirmed that due to ongoing disciplinary proceedings “as well the recent sensitive developments”, Cutajar was ordered to remain “temporarily away from the workplace and not perform duties” pending the ongoing proceedings.

“Therefore, please do not report for duty until further notice, however, do remain contactable during normal business hours,” Cutajar was told, as it stressed that this did not imply any guilt and that he was suspended on full pay. 

In his protest, Cutajar claimed there were several instances where he was told to certify buses as roadworthy even though repairs for “substantial damages” had not been done.

One bus, he said, had oil leaking onto the brakes, giving rise to potential malfunctioning of the braking system and also the risk of fire, but claimed his workshop manager ordered him to greenlight it anyway.

Reacting, MPT general manager Konrad Pulé told Times of Malta on Sunday that a meeting with the union was scheduled for Monday so that  UĦM is "given access to all records, as was given to the media this week, to put their mind at rest".