Chris Fearne has distanced himself from claims that a top aide received payments linked to the Vitals hospitals deal.

In a statement on Thursday, the Health Minister said he first learned of the allegations against Foundation for Medical Services CEO Carmen Ciantar from an online news website. 

Media in Pakistan reported that Ciantar received €440,000 in payments from a company linked to some of the original investors behind Vitals Global Healthcare.

Ciantar has denied wrongdoing and suspended herself from her role at the Foundation for Medical Services (FMS). 

On Thursday, Ciantar wrote to police commissioner Angelo Gafà, demanding an immediate investigation into the "unfounded claims" against her. 

"Seeing that I have absolutely nothing to hide, I am formally asking you to use your powers to investigate the unfounded claims," Ciantar said in her letter. 

The letter sent to the police commissioner by Carmen Ciantar.

Fearne said he was accepting Ciantar's suspension and urged the police to immediately investigate the allegations for the truth to be known.

He noted in the statement that the alleged payments took place prior to Ciantar being employed at FMS.  

Ciantar is a close political associate of Fearne, having even acted as his campaign manager.

She became CEO of the Foundation for Medical Services in 2016 having moved there from ARMS Ltd, the utilities billing company which was then under the ministerial responsibility of Konrad Mizzi. 

Last January, Ciantar asked the Commissioner for Standards in Public Life to investigate the ethics of her €163,000 contract to head the Foundation for Medical Services after the Nationalist Party called on the government to cancel it. 

The National Audit Office had highlighted Ciantar’s contract as “irregular”. 

An investigation by Times of Malta, OCCRP and The Shift revealed how investigators are probing suspicious payments linked to the Vitals/Steward hospitals deal. 

The payments include a money trail leading from Steward Health Care to ex-prime minister Joseph Muscat, via a Swiss intermediary. 

Muscat has denied wrongdoing and demanded that the magistrate leading the inquiry steps down. 

PN: Fearne should explain

The Nationalist Party in a brief statement said Chris Fearne needed to explain the claims involving his close political ally, and Police Commissioner  Angelo Gafà should investigate all the claims made to date about payments related to the hospitals concession, something which he should have done a long time ago.