The economy minister has denied that the government handed Mellieħa public land for development at a price lower than its market value, insisting that activists who want the National Audit Office to investigate him have their facts wrong.
Fielding questions from Times of Malta, Schembri said that the activists were either attempting to mislead people or they genuinely did not know the facts.
"They say the Mellieħa land costs €12 million and then there is talk of €380,000. The €380,000 is the lease that the developer will pay annually," he said.
"If the developer wants to purchase the land, he must buy it for that value multiplied by 35, which adds up to over €13 million - an even higher price than that valued by the NGO."
The investigation would only confirm that he acted appropriately, Schembri said.
On Tuesday residents’ rights group Il-Kollettiv, a group of Mellieħa residents, independent politician Arnold Cassola, PN MP Albert Buttigieg, Mellieħa mayor Gabriel Micallef, and deputy mayor Matthew Borg Cuschieri called on the National Audit Office to investigate Schembri over controversial land transfers which have paved the way for mega-construction projects in Mellieħa and St Julian's while he was the minister responsible for lands.
A controversy in Mellieħa and St Julian's
The petitioners want the NAO to look into a deal that saw a 4,000 square metre unbuilt site in Mellieħa transferred to T&S Property Holdings (owned by Paul Attard) on perpetual lease for an annual payment of almost €400,000.
T&S intends to turn the land into a large apartment block, to neighbours' dismay.
The activists also want the NAO to investigate the sale of a public alley in St George's Bay for €134,000 to developer Anton Camilleri, known as tal-Franċiż. That allowed him to consolidate a parcel of land he intends to turn into a massive mixed-use development at the Villa Rosa site.
Wayne Flask, of Il-Kollettiv, said the two deals were suspicious, especially since the price at which they were sold was "well below market prices".
Last week the NGO asked Schembri to divulge any dealings he had with Camilleri and Attard.
In a statement, Schembri said the conclusions of the audit would only confirm what he had already stated – that the Lands Authority operated independently from him.
'Minister not part of the Lands Authority process'
He insisted that the minister responsible for lands did not take part in any Lands Authority process or decision, and the authority board making those decisions was not even appointed by the minister.
"It's also ironic that one of the people asking for this investigation is a PN MP, when one of the board members making these decisions is a PN MP," he said.
"I look forward to the conclusion of these investigations because I have no problem bringing out the facts."