Relaunch EU job earmarked for Maltese-speakers, ombudsman tells commission

The European Ombudsman has called on the European Commission to organise a new selection procedure for the post occupied by a Latvian national who reportedly does not have a good command of Maltese.

The recommendation by Emily O'Reilly refers to the controversial appointment of Latvian economist Martins Zemitis as Semester Officer in the Maltese Representation of the EU Commission.

The role is to ensure the country lives up to the EU’s economic targets while liaising with local stakeholders and authorities and EU institutions.

According to the vacancy notice for the job, the candidate “must have a good command of Maltese and a very good knowledge of English. In-depth knowledge of the Maltese legal and administrative system will be an asset”.

The job description of the position lists among the “job requirements” knowledge of the Maltese language at B2 level.

During its investigation into the matter, which was flagged by MEP Alex Agius Saliba, the ombudsman found that the commission’s file pertaining to the selection procedure - including the selection panel’s comments - showed that the selected candidate did not meet this requirement.

Times of Malta reported last year that according to several sources, Zemitis does not know Maltese and hardly has in-depth knowledge of the Maltese legal and administrative system.

Zemitis had beaten at least three Maltese nationals to the post, all of whom were reportedly qualified for the job and one of whom had already served in the same role for seven years.

However, the commission had defended its decision in a reply to a parliamentary question by Agius Saliba, saying Zemitis fulfilled a mix of the required criteria in the best way and that he would be doing his job in Malta in English anyway.

Dissatisfied with the reply, Agius Saliba turned to the ombudsman, claiming the way the commission had filled the post in Malta was unfair and unethical, as the commission had not respected the relevant vacancy notice. In his view, selecting Zemitis for the post amounted to maladministration.

During its investigation into the matter, the ombudsman found that by selecting a candidate who did not meet one of the essential criteria set out in the vacancy notice, the commission deviated from the provisions of the vacancy notice, by which it was bound. “This constituted maladministration,” it confirmed.

It pointed out that in its reply to both the parliamentary question and to the ombudsman, the commission did not contest the fact that the selected candidate did not meet the Maltese language requirement.

Instead, the commission seemed to imply that the knowledge of Maltese was of secondary importance compared to the rest of the criteria, or even that it was not necessary after all.

This week, the ombudsman sent her verdict to the commission and Agius Saliba, recommending that the former “should organise a new selection procedure for the post of Economic Analyst - European Semester Officer in its representation in Malta without delay”.

The ombudsman also suggested the commission should consider its needs and priorities when deciding on the essential criteria for a post, and clearly reflect these in the vacancy notice.

Should these needs and priorities change following the publication of the vacancy notice, the commission should withdraw the vacancy notice and publish an amended version, it said.

The commission has until October 16 to send a detailed opinion on the ombudsman’s recommendation.