The alleged victims of Clint Axisa have been "safeguarded" from his return to the public service because he was sent to another government entity, Prime Minister Robert Abela insisted on Friday. 

Axisa, a former Transport Malta official, was previously suspended on half-pay after he was charged in court with committing non-consensual sexual acts on a female co-worker and sexually harassing her and another woman. 

He is pleading not guilty to those charges. 

But earlier this month he returned to work at a different government agency, Infrastructure Malta, despite criminal charges remaining pending against him. 

A women's rights NGO has described the news as a "slap in the face" for victims of abuse and condemned the move. 

But on Friday, the prime minister insisted that the rights of the victim had been safeguarded in the situation. 

“He returned to work at a different entity. This was a safeguard and prevented a situation that this individual (Axisa) would meet the person he allegedly committed a crime against,” Abela said when asked if he agreed with Axisa’s return to work despite pending criminal charges.  

The accusations against Axisa came to light after independent candidate Arnold Cassola wrote directly to the prime minister about it.

He had already been suspended from work at the time but was charged in court two days after Cassola shared his letter to the prime minister with the media. 

Equality junior minister Rebecca Buttigieg has also said that she would not have accepted someone with similar charges to work in her ministry.

Axisa is among 36 people who, since last October, have been allowed to return to work with the public service despite continuing to face criminal charges.

According to Abela, this is nothing new and that the Public Service Commission (PSC) already has policies that detail what procedures should be invoked in such circumstances. 

“It is the regulations of the PSC which define the procedure and then different entities have their own regulations,” he said.  

No established practice dictates that anyone with criminal accusations must remain suspended, he added.  

“The PSC disciplinary regulations give discretion to department heads, that pending court proceedings they can decide to either suspend people or not”.  

He added that the PSC is made up of members who represent both the government and the opposition and that it evaluates every case on its individual merit.

“Just like the PSC can suspend individuals, it can also bring back workers with pending the criminal procedures," Abela continued. 

The government was faced with a situation where it had to refund workers who were found not guilty for the rest of their salary.

These would still have to be paid in full despite sometimes years having elapsed since the person last worked for the public service. 

He said that the PSC is considering, on a case-by-case basis, whether individual cases merited suspension.  

“There are cases where, despite the presumption of innocence, they do not merit a return to work,” Abela said.  

Those who do return to work are sent to different entities, he said.