The “devious way” whereby education authorities were trying to “constructively dismiss” MCAST principal Joachim James Calleja breached the Ombudsman Act, the Commissioner for Education said.
In a damning final opinion delivered on Tuesday, the commissioner within the Ombudsman’s Office, Chief Justice Emeritus Vincent De Gaetano, concluded that the circumstances of the case showed that Calleja’s dismissal was “both unreasonable and unjust.”
He also cautioned the authorities not to go ahead with the planned dismissal in two days.
The case revolved around Calleja’s post as principal and CEO of the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology (MCAST) which he occupied since 2018.
That post did not fall within the remit of the Public Administration Collective Bargaining Unit at the Office of the Prime Minister.
The Education Act itself spelt out that the college’s supreme governing body was the board of governors “ostensibly to underscore the academic and administrative independence of MCAST from the political establishment”.
In March 2021, the principal’s employment contract was extended on a definite basis up to May 31, 2026.
But last June, Calleja received a letter from the permanent secretary within the education ministry informing him that his “request” to work beyond the age of 67 had not been accepted.
The termination was to take effect at the end of August 2024.
Calleja complained to the Ombudsman’s Office claiming his dismissal was unlawful and politically motivated.
When notified about the complaint, the permanent secretary at the education ministry replied that everything was done according to law.
The commissioner was to investigate whether such a decision by the authorities amounted to an act of maladministration, applying the rule of law as the “leitmotif” and “transparency and accountability as the linchpins.”
The commissioner observed that when extending the contract in March 2021, the board of governors knew the principal’s age "fairly well”
There was no evidence to suggest that that information fell within the parameters of the Official Secrets Act, remarked De Gaetano.
The contract expired only at the end of May 2026 and it was governed exclusively by the Employment and Industrial Relations Act.
The contract did not refer to any requirement of periodic approval by the education minister or his permanent secretary.
Nor was there any such “reference, hint or suggestion” in the letter of renewal signed by the president of the board of governors in May 2021.
To date, the only reason provided to the complainant and the commissioner for the constructive dismissal was that his request to work beyond the age of 67 had not been accepted.
Such a reason was “spurious” and made “a mockery” of the authority of the college’s board of governors as well as employment laws.
The “devious way” whereby education authorities were attempting to dismiss the complainant was highlighted further by the contents of a 'To Whom It May Concern' note penned by the former president of the board.
Before stepping down from that role, law professor Ian Refalo wrote that Calleja had “steered the college to unprecedented academic heights, whilst ensuring that each and every one of the students was given all the support and guidance necessary to reach his or her full potential.”
Refalo also stated that Calleja’s “integrity and commitment towards vocational and dual education is exceptional.”
The commissioner concluded that the “imminent constructive dismissal” violated various provisions of the Ombudsman Act and recommended that the education authorities “desist” from going ahead with their decision in two days.
Lawyer Matthew Xuereb is assisting the complainant.