A parliamentary committee suspended the appointment of Carmen Ciantar as the executive chair of the competition authority after members of the Nationalist Party argued she was already acting in this role.
On Tuesday, the public appointments committee (PAC) met to discuss Ciantar's appointment as chair of the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority (MCCAA).
Before appointing a chairperson of the MCCAA, by law, the nominated person must sit before a PAC and be voted in. Generally, any person nominated by the government is approved given that they have the majority vote.
During the PAC hearing, PN MP Adrian Delia presented documents from the government's internal directory showing that Ciantar was already listed as the chair of the MCCAA, despite not having sat for the meeting yet.
“We cannot condone being part of a rubber-stamping exercise,” Delia said.
Delia asked that the appointment hearing be suspended until a representative of the MCCAA is brought before the PAC - ideally the current chairperson of the MCCAA - to clarify why she has already been given this role.
“This is a complete disrespect towards this committee, the parliament’s speaker, and the parliament as an institution,” Delia said.
He drew comparisons to what was happening in parliament at the same time, where the PN walked out again after the House continued to debate a government motion censuring PN MP Karol Aquilina for his behaviour, accusing him of disrespecting parliament.
The committee unanimously agreed to halt Ciantar’s appointment and only return to the matter once a representative of the MCCAA sits before the PAC to face questions from the Opposition.
Last month, The Shift released a story that Ciantar had already begun acting as the chair of the MCCAA, replacing Ing Helga Pizzuto.
Ciantar was nominated for the post after her term as CEO of the Foundation for Medical Services (FMS) was not renewed when Health Minister Jo Etienne Abela was appointed new health minister.
Prior to this, she stepped down from that role in June 2023 after a Pakistani newspaper - later revealed to be part of a smear campaign funded by Steward - accused her of receiving kickbacks.