Construction giants Polidano Group have distanced themselves from the fatal building collapse on December 3, insisting they were not involved in the building site other than acting as suppliers of “quality materials”.
During the rescue operation, Polidano issued a statement to say that a crane and waste excavator were sent on site, helping with the rescue effort.
Polidano is understood to have supplied the bulk of the concrete bricks used to construct the multi-storey building, which killed 20-year-old JeanPaul Sofia and injured five other people when it collapsed.
A spokesperson for Polidano said the group had no involvement with the site in question, other than to act as a supplier of “quality materials” and to assist, at the request of the Civil Protection Department, with the delicate recovery operation due to the need for heavy-duty machinery.
“This operation was carried out under the direction of the inquiring magistrate, court-appointed architect and CPD officials. All material was deposited in areas around the site according to their direction,” the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said its building materials meet the highest European and international standards, and production is carried out according to what are known as ISO standards.
Polidano Group answered a call for help at a time of urgent need and provided assistance through the night on a no-fee basis, the spokesman said.
“We also have no doubt that the magisterial inquiry will establish the real causes of the incident.”
An inquiry into the fatal collapse is being led by magistrate Marse-Ann Farrugia.
Operation was carried out under the direction of the inquiring magistrate
The government land on which the furniture factory was being built was leased to a Maltese company called AllPlus.
One of the company’s directors is Kurt Buhagiar, a senior Lands Authority official who has faced accusations of human trafficking.
His partner, Matthew Schembri, was this year accused of hiring two “hitmen” to attack his ex-wife’s father-in-law.
Both men have been summoned to testify in the ongoing inquiry.
Adriana Zammit, the architect who designed the collapsed building, is an Infrastructure Malta employee.
Planning records show Zammit kept up a steady private trade alongside her full-time employment with the agency.
The agency’s architects are not precluded from working on private sector projects. Shift News have reported that the building works were carried out by a Serbian contractor.