Mur Lura
Stqarrija maghmula mis-Sur Alfred Muscat, ex-Direttur tal-Lottu Pubbliku in konnessjoni ma’ dikjarazzjonijiet kif gew irrappurtati fil-gurnali, maghmula fil-Kamra tar-Rapprezentanti nhar l-10 ta’ Ottubru 2001, mill-Onor. Dott. Angelo Farrugia, M.P.
09/11/2001
| STQARRIJA Jiena hawn taħt iffirmat Alfred Muscat, Ex-Direttur tal-Lottu Pubbliku nagħmel riferenza għad-dikjarazzjonijiet kif ġew irrapurtati fil-ġurnali, magħmula fil-Kamra tar-Rappreżentanti nhar l-10 ta’ Ottubru 2001, mill-Onorevoli Dr Anġlu Farrugia Kelliem Ewlieni ta’ l-Oppożizzjoni fejn għamel allegazzjoni dwar ir-rebħ ta’ karozza KIA MENTOR mis-Sur Stephen Saliba, it-tifel tas-Sur John Saliba, Group Head Marketing and PR Air Malta, fejn issemma wkoll ismi bħala Direttur tal-Lottu Pubbliku u li ġab dan għall-attenzjoni tal-Ministru tal-Finanzi u d-diriġenti ta’ l-Air Malta plc. Ippermettili illi nikkoreġi l-fatti dwar dan l-allegat skandlu: Jidher li Dr. Farrugia bbaża l-allegazzjonijiet tiegħu fuq il-kontenut ta’ ittra anonima li kienet diġa’ ġiet investigata mill-awtoritajiet tal-pulizija fl-aħħar ta’ l-1999, liema investigazzjonijiet ovvjament irriżultaw fin-negattiv u bla ebda bażi. Il-biljetti tal-Lotterija Nazzjonali flimkien mal-parti li tinbarax-f’liema parti nstabet u ntrebħet il-Karozza KIA imsemmija minn Dr. Farrugia-jiġu pprintjati minn ‘Security Printers’ fl-Ingilterra li huma ‘Scientific Games Int. Ltd’ Din id-ditta tiggarantixxi taħt l-akbar miżuri stretti professjonali u rregulati minn istituti tal-Lotteriji nternazzjonali, li: bl-ebda mod, u taħt l-ebda ċirkustanza ma’ jista xi ħadd ikun jaf x’hemm taħt il-parti li tinbarax ta’ xi biljett li huma | jistampaw. Irrid inżid ukoll illi l-biljett rebbieħ tal-karozza KIA ntrebaħ mis-Sur Saliba mhux permezz ta’ xi tlugħ ta’ numru tal-Lotterija Nazzjonali iżda permezz ta’ premjijiet li jintrebħu fil-parti li tinbarax tal-biljett jiġifieri fil-parti ta’ l-‘Scratch’. Il-biljett rebbieħ tal-Karozza KIA u li Dr. Farrugia qiegħed jirriferi għalih fl-imsemmija seduta parlamentari, inbiegħ lis-Sur Saliba minn wieħed mis-‘sellers’ li jbiegħu l-biljetti tal-Lotterija fit-Triq ir-Repubblika cioe’ mis-Sur David Bartolo li kien xtara 355 biljetti mid-Dipartiment sabiex ikun jista’ jbiegħhom u li fosthom kien hemm il-biljett rebbieħ cioe’ il-biljett numru A22052. Għalhekk jirriżulta li d-Dipartiment tal-Lottu ma kellu x’jaqsam xejn ma l-bejgħ ta’ dan il-biljett u wisq aktar ma kelli x’naqsam xejn jien bħala Direttur tal-Lottu Pubbliku. Nixtieq inżid ukoll wara li ċċarajt dawn il-fatti li jidher li Dr. Farrugia qiegħed indirettament jakkuża wkoll lil ‘Scientific Games International’ b’kompliċita fl-allegat każ. Dan minħabba li hu fatt magħruf li ma tista’ qatt trebbaħ lil xi ħadd premju fl-‘Scratch’ mingħajr il-kompliċita ta’ l-istampaturi tal-biljetti. Kull min hu midħla ta’ kif isir ix-xogħol fis-‘Security Printing’ jifhem u jaf eżatt x’qiegħed ngħid u x’irrid infisser. Għalhekk jien ħadt il-passi biex ninforma lil ‘Scientific Games International Ltd’ b’dawn l-allegazzjonijiet. Huwa fatt li d-Dipartiment tal-Lottu kien wasal fi ftehim ma’ l-Air Malta sabiex il-Linja Nazzjonali tagħti ħmistax (15) il-biljett ta’ l-ajru b’xejn (Free of Charge) lid-Dipartiment sabiex jintużaw mill-interpreti u membri oħra ta’ l-Eżekuttiv għall-Kungress ta’ l- Assoccjazzjoni Internazzjonali tal-Lotteriji li kien inżamm Malta f’Mejju 1999. Bħala kumpens ta’ dan, id-Dipartiment rreklama bl-almu tiegħu kollu l-użu mad-delegati ta’ l-Assoċjazzjoni tal-Kumpanija ta’ l-Ajru Nazzjonali l-Air Malta .B’dan il-ftehim id-Dipartiment tal-Lottu iffranka eluf kbar ta’ liri lil pajjiżna fl-organizzazzjoni ta’ dan il-Kungress u fl-istess ħin inkoraġġixxa bil-kbir l-użu mad-delegati, tal-Linja Nazzjonali tagħna l-Air Malta. Għaldaqstant Dr. Farrugia kien aktar mistenni li japprezza dan il-ftehim milli jużah bħala arma biex jitfa dell ikrah fuqi u fuq is-Sur Saliba. Ghalhekk jien nistenna li bħala persuna responsabbli eletta mill-poplu u bħala ex-uffiċjal għoli tal-pulizija li jaf sew x’inhu s-sewwa, Dr. Farrugia jirrikonoxxi li l-allegazzjonijiet tiegħu huma zbaljati; u għaldaqstant nitolbu jikkoreġi din is-sitwazzjoni u li jekk għandu xi nformazzjoni dwar l-awtur ta’ l-ittra anonima li oriġinat din il-ħrafa jgħaddiha immedjatament lil pulizija għall-aktar stħarriġ. Dawn l-allegazzjonijiet bla bażi iservu biss sabiex jiddiskreditaw il-kredibilita’ tad-Dipartiment tal-Lottu Pubbliku u l-ufficjali tieghu. Madanakollu jekk Dr. Farrugia jħossu imbarazzat li jagħmel dan, jien gentilment nitolbu w inħeġġu li jagħmel dikjarazzjoni pubblika barra mill-parlament dwar l-imsemmija allegazzjonijiet biex inkun f’qagħda li nieħu l-miżuri li tagħtini l-liġi biex nirribatti dawn l-allegazzjonijiet; u biex nipprotegi r-reputazzjoni tieghi u tad-Dipartiment tal-Lottu Pubbliku, li jiena mexxejt ghal numru ta’ snin. |
| Alfred Muscat | Ex-Direttur (Lottu Pubbliku) |
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The Finance Ministry is publishing the following Statement made by Mr Alfred Muscat, former Director of Public Lotto, regarding the declaration made in the House of Representatives on the 10th October 2001, by the Hon. Dr. Angelo Farrugia, M.P., as reported in the Press.
STATEMENT
I the undersigned Alfred Muscat, former Director of Public Lotto, refer to the declaration made in the House of Representatives on the 10th October 2001 by the Honourable Dr. Anglu Farrugia, leading spokesperson for the Opposition, and as reported in the press whereby he made allegations about the winning of a KIA MENTOR by Mr Stephen Saliba, the son of Mr John Saliba - Group Head Marketing and PR Air Malta - and where he mentioned me as Director of Public Lotto, which allegation was also brought to the attention of the Minister of Finance and the directors of Air Malta plc.
Please permit me to correct the facts concerning this alleged scandal.
It appears that Dr. Farrugia based his allegations on the contents of an anonymous letter which had already been investigated by the Police Authorities at the end of 1999, and which had produced negative results.
The lottery tickets together with their scratch part content - in which part was found the winning KIA Mentor mentioned by Dr. Farrugia - are printed by ‘Security Printers’ in the United Kingdom, Scientific Games International Ltd. This firm guarantees under the strictest professional methods and as regulated by International lottery Organisations, that nobody under any circumstances can know or somehow detect what prizes lie beneath the scratch part of any ticket that they print.
I would also like to add that the winning ticket of the KIA Mentor won by Mr. Saliba was not through a number drawn in the National Lottery but through the scratch part section of the ticket.
The winning ticket of the KIA Mentor referred to by Dr. Farrugia in the said parliamentary session was sold to Mr. Saliba by one of the street sellers who sell National Lottery tickets in Republic Street, Valletta - that is, Mr. David Bartolo who had bought 355 National Lottery tickets from the Department in order to sell them and amongst which was the winning ticket - ticket number A 22052. It therefore results that the Department of Public Lotto had nothing at all to do with the sale of this ticket let alone, as Director of this Department, had I anything to do with this sale. I would also like to add that after examining all the facts, it appears that Dr. Farrugia is also indirectly accusing Scientific Games International with complicity in this alleged case. This is because it is a known fact that one can never assist anyone to win a prize through a scratch ticket without the collusion of the ticket printers. Anyone who knows how security printing takes place, knows and understands exactly what I am saying and what I mean. I have therefore taken measures to inform Scientific Games International Ltd. about these allegations.
It is a fact that the Department of Public Lotto came to an agreement with Air Malta so that the national carrier would donate fifteen (15) air tickets free of charge to the Department to be used by the interpreters and other members of the executive committee attending the congress of the European Association of State Lotteries held in Malta in May 1999.
In return the Department promoted wholeheartedly the usage of the national carrier amongst the delegates attending the congress. Through this agreement the Public Lotto Department saved thousands of pounds of taxpayers’ money in the organisation of this congress whilst at the same time encouraged the use amongst the delegates of the national airline Air Malta. In the circumstances Dr. Farrugia was expected to understand and appreciate such an arrangement instead of using it as a weapon to beat Mr Saliba and myself.
As a result of this I expect that Dr. Farrugia, as an elected representative of the people and an ex-high official of the Police Corps., who knows very well what is right, to recognise that his allegations are incorrect; and therefore I implore him to rectify the situation and ask him that if he has any information regarding the author of the anonymous letter that conjured up this fable to pass on this information to the police for further investigation. Such baseless and unfounded allegations serve only to discredit the credibility of the Department and its officials.
Notwithstanding, if Dr. Farrugia feels embarassed to do this, I kindly ask him and encourage him to repeat these allegations in a public declaration outside parliament in order that I can take the steps permitted by law to rebutt these allegations, and to protect my reputation as well as the reputation of the Public Lotto Department which I had directed for a good number of years.
Alfred Muscat
Former Director (Lotteries)
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