Edward Scicluna has officially been axed from the financial regulator’s board of governors.

The announcement was made in the government gazette on Friday, a day after prime minister Robert Abela said he was going to remove him.

Scicluna however has yet to bow to Abela’s pressure to resign as central bank governor.

He said on Thursday that the central bank has its "own rules". 

Scicluna's role was again called into question after a court ruled there was enough prima facie evidence of wrongdoing in the hospitals scandal for him to face trial.

The notice as published in the Government Gazette on Friday

Scicluna, who has been charged with fraud, denies wrongdoing.

He did not respond to a request for comment when contacted by Times of Malta on Friday. 

Appointed on January 1, 2021, Scicluna's five-year term as governor of the Central Bank of Malta also includes membership in the governing council of the European Central Bank (ECB).

A spokesperson for the ECB said the bank does not comment on “pending legal proceedings”.

The prime minister does not appear to have the legal power to remove Scicluna from his governor role. 

Earlier this week Scicluna said: "The EU rules are clear for every European governor. A governor is asked to resign only if found guilty of a crime."

The European Central Bank treaty states a governor "may be relieved from office only if he no longer fulfils the conditions required for the performance of his duties or if he has been guilty of serious misconduct."

Scicluna was finance minister in Joseph Muscat's government when the deal was approved in cabinet to hand over St Luke's, Karin Grech and Gozo General hospitals to Vitals, and later Steward.

However, he has insisted he was not part of a "kitchen cabinet" of advisors that "bypassed the system" and claimed he had a limited role in a series of controversial projects that were allowed to go ahead. 

In a press conference on Friday, Opposition leader Bernard Grech said Abela does not have the moral authority to convince Scicluna to step down.

He said Scicluna was part of a “clique” close to the prime minister who view themselves as above the law.

Grech said he is willing to unite with the prime minister in a parliamentary vote calling for Scicluna’s resignation.

On Thursday, Grech wrote to parliament speaker Anglu Farrugia demanding an emergency meeting of parliament.

Grech said he has yet to hear back from the speaker. Parliament can only convene urgent sessions if the two sides of the House agree to do so.