19 May 2013 | 06:43
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The Secretariat of the Supervisory Committee of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) has said that the committee could adopt an opinion on the Dalli case at its next plenary meeting, on 20 November.
The OLAF Supervisory Committee comprises five independent outside experts appointed by common agreement of the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission for three years (renewable once). Christiaan Timmermans (Netherlands), Herbert Boesch (Austria), Johan Denolf (Belgium), Catherine Pignon (France) and Schembri (Malta) were elected on 25 January 2012 and were supposed to stay in office until 2015.
Last Thursday the Supervisory Committee offically announced the resignation of its Chairman, Christiaan Timmermans, “for personal reasons”. It also said that another member of the committee, Rita Schembri, withdrew from any of the work of the Supervisory Committee in order to avoid potential conflict of interest with the “Dalli case”. This is due to the fact that the Maltese Internal Audit and Investigations Department (IAID), which falls under her portfolio as the permanent secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister of Malta, had assisted OLAF in a part of that investigation conducted in Malta, as required by the administrative cooperation arrangement between the IAID and OLAF (a standard arrangement signed between OLAF and the respective authorities of the countries acceding to the EU in 2004).
Immediately after the release of this declaration, the European People’s party (EPP) group coordinator in the Committee on Budgetary Control (CONT) of the European Parliament, Ingeborg Grässle, demanded full transparency on the reason for Timmermans’ resignation. “The OLAF Supervisory Committee has to disclose the real reason for the resignation of its chairman in the immediate aftermath of the resignation of Commissioner Dalli”, Grässle said.
The Secretariat of the committee has announced that Timmermans will remain a member of the committee but will be replaced by Denolf in the post of chairman.
Source: Europolitics
Comments
Europe
PLatun
- Mon 29-Oct-2012, 10:58Tahsbu li Rita hobzha nhux mahbuz ghal wara l-elezzjoni? Din hi wahda minn dawk li maghandiex tistenna li titqaccat imma ghandha tati r-rizenja taghha minnu fih kif ikun hemm gvern gid, jekk mhux issa.Jista xi hadd jghatina lista tal-kwalifikazzjonijiet li ghandha barra t-tessera ta' gonzipn.
Abela G.
- Mon 29-Oct-2012, 10:24Jidher dar li Rita Schembri ma qditx dmirha sewwa. Daqstant iehor huwa car li Rita Schembri indahlet fejn ma kelliex tidhol u ghalhekk kellha konflitt ta interess mil bidunett. Rita Schembri ghandha ghalhekk tirrizenja b'[mod immedjat. Jien ukoll irrid nistaqsi kif din Schrmbri giet eletta fil-kumitat ta OLAF. Min kien li hadem biex Schembri tkun eletta f'dan il-Kumitat tal-OLAF? L-ambaxxata Maltija fi Brussels kellha xi sehem f'dan kollu? Kellha jew le xi relazzjonijiet mal-istess Ambaxxata? Il-PL ma jista qatt jaccetta dawn il-manuvri, specjalmnt jekk verament jemmen li se jkun fil-Gvern. Il-PL ghandu minn issa jaghmilha cara li Rita Schemb ri ghandha tirrizenja u jekk le, inehhiha b'mod immedjat hekk kif ikun fil-Gvern. Ma nistghux nibqhu lura aktar f'dawn l-affarijiet; voti u mhux. Il-PL jrid juri li hu serju u mhux lest ihalli manuvri ta dan it-tip isiru, kontra hadd izjed u izjed kontra Malti bhalna, f'haga daqstant serja. . Rita Schemb ri ghandha tirrizenja jew tiffaccja l-konsegwenzi. Schembri kienet taf li kellha konflitt ta interess u minkejja dan, baqghet hemm. Tghid ghaliex? Hi x'inhi r-risposta, Schemri ghandha tirrizenja jew inkella l-Oppozizzjoni titlob ufficjalment ghar-rizenja taghha. Hekk titlob is-serjeta u nispera li l-PL huwa serju bizzejjed li ma jiddejjaqx jaghmel dan. B'hekk il-PL jakkwista kredibilita veru, il-bqija nkunu bhala Gonzi, npacpcu biss.
Pawlu
- Mon 29-Oct-2012, 08:25Prosit ghal Rita! Issa ndunat li kien hemm kas ta' kunflitt ta' nteress? Kif jista jkun li persuna tant imlahhqa hija daqshekk slow-witted? Wahda li ma ghandniex bzonnha jekk jinbidel il-gvern, ghax ser ikollna bzonn nies aktar zmalizzjati u quick-thinking minnha. Issa, li l-hsara setghet saret, x,ser naghmlu, Rit?
albert farrugia
- Mon 29-Oct-2012, 08:23I suggest that Rita Schembri should resign from her position She will cause a lot of problems to the Labour Administration. A women which is very unreliable and untrusted person.
Stinky
- Mon 29-Oct-2012, 07:39Everything connected with the EU in this case stinks like a cesspit.
BETTER FUTURE
- Sun 28-Oct-2012, 17:31No wonder some people got a meteoric rise in the Civil service!! There should be a forced resignation from the civil service and all other posts for employees that have transgressed EU AND Maltese rules of engagement and code of ethics if not worse!!