Former Nationalist Party general secretary Joe Saliba has insisted that the party’s finances were in good shape when he left his post in 2008, and its commercial entities, including the media, were self-sustaining.

His comment was backed by interim general secretary Francis Zammit Dimech, who described the current financial situation as “stable” in view of the fact that the PN’s assets eclipse its liabilities.

The two were asked for their reaction in the wake of the latest controversy on the PN’s ailing finances.

A recent Malta Today report, coming at the height of Adrian Delia’s leadership crisis, put the party’s debts at €34 million.

Party sources speaking to Times of Malta on condition of anonymity said the figure was in the region of €25 million.

The figure of €34 million has been denied by the PN but former general secretary Clyde Puli and outgoing deputy leader Robert Arrigo both said in their resignation letters that poor financial health was to blame for the party’s existing struggles.

Mr Puli referred to the “precarious financial situation with millions of debts accumulated throughout previous years under the watch of preceding administrations”. He said this was shackling the party.

Mr Arrigo complained that the debts of marble tiles ordered for the new headquarters before 2008 (Dar Ċentrali) had only been settled after 2017.

‘Dar Ċentrali is not to blame’

Mr Saliba, who was at the helm between 1999 and 2008, declined to give any figures, partly, he said, through “a sense of loyalty to the party and to avoid hurting the feelings of supporters and officials who succeeded him”. However, the truth would prevail, he added.

Be it out of naivety or for malicious reasons, he said that from time to time rumours were spread that most of the debt had been accumulated during his tenure, mostly due to the reconstruction of the Dar Ċentrali, and that he had left the party’s finances in bad shape.

The only debt in my time was the result of investment and not recurrent expenditure

“This is not true and very far away from reality,” he said.

The party’s commercial arms, including Media.link and Eurotours, were self-sustaining, he added.

“The Dar Ċentrali was mostly built on the strength of the money raised through donations and the only debt in my time was the result of investment and not recurrent expenditure.

“The party’s situation used to be debated annually during yearly seminars within the administrative council between managers, heads of department and employees, and nobody ever leaked a single word,” he said.

Asked about the bill for the marble tiles, he said Mr Arrigo was right, as this expense – of about €22,000 – should have been settled before.

On the other hand, he pointed out that even though the amount must have been quite a substantial sum for suppliers, The Palazz Company, this amount (and what was still to be paid by the time he finished his term as general secretary) was a relatively small amount compared to the overall investment in the project.

Mr Saliba also pointed out that Dar Ċentrali was built with the aim of leasing out parts of it in order to create an additional revenue stream.

“However, for some reason which I am not aware of, this option never materialised,” he said.

Dr Zammit Dimech, who has only been in his post for a few days but has been active in the party for 40 years, said Mr Saliba had left the party in better shape than when he found it. 

“The new Dar Ċentrali means that the party’s assets increased in value,” he pointed out.

Shifting the buck is ‘childish’

Following the 2008 electoral victory, the PN’s last success at the polls, Mr Saliba did not seek re-election and was succeeded by former Valletta mayor Paul Borg Olivier who remained in office until 2013.

It was under the latter’s watch that the party’s financial woes came to light in public, when a week after the 2013 general election defeat, the PN had no money to pay its employees.

However, in a Facebook post, Dr Borg Olivier recently refuted claims that he had last control of the situation.

“Shifting the buck on others at the end of a term is childish and typical of pre-school yard ‘politics,’” he said.

“Under my helm as secretary general, the party addressed the financial situation in a thorough manner, backed by the party administration. We had already designed a similar ċedoli [loan] scheme which was taken up later,” he added.

Dr Borg Olivier said he was willing to give further explanations supported by documentation to the executive committee should there be need for any clarification.