The EU’s fledgeling anti-graft agency is still waiting for Malta to nominate a local prosecutor to investigate fraud and corruption in the use of EU funds.
Each of the 22 EU countries forming part of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office needs to nominate a minimum of two “delegated prosecutors” to the agency.
The EPPO cannot begin to investigate fraud until every country has accepted at least one nominee from each country.
The nomination of these local prosecutors is the responsibility of the Justice Ministry.
Contacted by Times of Malta, a ministry spokesperson said two calls for applications had been issued over the last months, and the process of finding the right candidate for the job was ongoing.
The spokesperson said Justice Minister Edward Zammit Lewis had discussed the issue with EU Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders last week, during which the government reiterated its commitment to actively participate in the EU project as part of a bigger mission to fight trans-border crime and in this case crimes against the financial interests of the Union.
Once suitable candidates have been identified, the ministry then needs to send the nominated prosecutor’s CVs to the EPPO for vetting.
Although the EPPO has only received candidates from 11 of the 22 countries, a source familiar with the agency’s functions said there was concern about Malta as the government had left them in the dark about how the recruitment process was going.
Huge risk of abuses in the way EU money is spent
A spokesperson for the EPPO confirmed the agency has yet to receive official communication from the Justice Minister about how the recruitment drive was progressing.
In an interview with Times of Malta last week, EU Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders flagged up the fact that Malta had yet to nominate a single candidate for the delegated prosecutor role.
He said the Commission had encouraged the government to nominate at least one local prosecutor, to help the EPPO get up and running.
“As you know, we are going to start spending more money, with more flexibility. So, there is a huge risk of fraud and abuses in the way EU money is spent.
“And for the most time, it will be possible to organise investigations directly from the EU level,” Reynders said.
Last year, Malta struggled to identify three suitable candidates to sit on the EPPO’s college of prosecutors, who are based in Luxembourg.
The European Commission was forced to make an exception for Malta, allowing the government to nominate two candidates instead of three.
Police inspector Yvonne Farrugia was accepted on the agency’s college of prosecutors last July, and now works out of Luxembourg.
Malta had declined to join the EPPO in 2017 but reversed its decision after an international spotlight was cast on the government’s failure to fight corruption following the assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.
It had said in October 2017 that the decision not to join the EPPO was based on “sound technical reasons” based on the principle of subsidiarity, where countries have a right to keep certain sectors under its control.
Five months later, then justice minister Owen Bonnici announced a change of heart and Malta’s participation in the EPPO was formally approved in August 2018.