Malta’s Foreign Ministry To Apologise To Germany After Ambassador Posts Outrageous Status Comparing Angela Merkel To Hitler
Malta will apologise to Germany on behalf of its Ambassador to Finland after he posted a status in which he compared Chancellor Angela Merkel to Adolf Hitler.
Michael Zammit Tabona has come under scrutiny after he uploaded a Facebook status in which he claimed that Merkel had “fulfilled Hitler’s dream” to control Europe.
A statement by Malta’s ambassador to Finland, appointed after making donations to the governing party (you won’t find this in Politico Europe’s interview with our foreign minister): pic.twitter.com/UTUrOOpT77
— Matthew Caruana Galizia (@mcaruanagalizia) May 10, 2020
“75 years ago we stopped Hitler. Who will stop Angela Merkel? She has fulfilled Hitler’s dream! To control Europe,” he said.
Michael Zammit Tabona is a hotelier and restaurateur who forms part of the Fortel Group which heads the Fortina Hotel.
The company has come under fire in recent months over the application for a jetty in a public part of St Julian’s Bay. Meanwhile, the Fortina Hotel’s change of use from a hotel to offices and residential developments have also raised eyebrows.
Fortel Group is also linked to Captain Morgan Cruises, the tourism ferry service currently housing migrants outside Maltese territorial waters at a reportedly high fee.
Zammit Tabona has since deleted the status but not before it reached the public sphere and came under fire for its insensitivity and inappropriateness.
According to The Times of Malta, Foreign Minister Evarist Bartolo instructed Zammit Tabona to remove the status and will be issuing an apology to the German embassy.
Bartolo will also be issuing a reminder to diplomats on the importance of appropriate and responsible use of social media.