At PN Rally, Young Accountant Rips Into Robert Abela For ‘Not Taking Greylisting Seriously’
Accountant and PN activist Jake Scerri Seychell has accused Prime Minister Robert Abela of not taking Malta’s FATF greylisting seriously, warning that the grey list is making life harder and more expensive.
“A lot of money and time is being spent on compliance requirements that have become excessive,” the young accountant told a PN rally in St Julian’s.
“It has become more expensive to open and maintain a company, it has become tougher to open a bank account, it has become more expensive to sign a simple notarial contract, and this is largely the result of greylisting.”
“Unless this is tackled seriously and immediately, it will leave economic repercussions. It saddens me to say that the government isn’t taking greylisting seriously; it estimates that it will take us 18 months to get us out of the grey list, which means 18 months of no investment, of companies leaving Malta, and of a lack of opportunities.”
“Robert Abela tries to minimise greylisting but he must face the problem head-on. Unfortunately many fines are being dished out to Maltese and foreign companies, with the money going to the government, which is to blame for this situation.”
Opposition Leader Bernard Grech reiterated his pledge to get Malta off the grey list within three months if he is elected Prime Minister, insisting this is possible as the people of Malta “would have turned a new page”.
Abela recently announced that Malta has completed its action plan to get off the grey list and that the process with the FATF is proceeding satisfactorily.
However, he declined to give further details, warning it could jeopardise the process.
Have you been impacted by Malta’s greylisting?
READ NEXT: These Are All The Labour Candidates Who Are Contesting The General Election So Far
