‘The Hospitals Betrayal’: Money Bag Hung On Judas Tree Outside Castille
A purse depicting the sum of €400 million was hung outside Castille by activists on Saturday.
The bag, hung on a Judas tree, symbolised the money “stolen from Maltese citizens from the government’s fraudulent deal with Vitals/Steward,”#occupyjustice said.
“We have been unforgivably betrayed by those who signed the contract to sell our hospitals to third parties with no past experience in healthcare management. A betrayal in which Malta’s prized healthcare system was sold in a corrupt deal for the proverbial thirty pieces of silver – a ‘real deal’ that proved to be anything but,” the group said.
“#occupyjustice demands the good governance we have been denied, so that Malta’s once-good reputation is restored after years of filth.”
“This is our nation, this is our home, and we are the people. We expect better. We deserve better. We demand better.”
Their protest is the latest in the wake of a damning court verdict that called the Vitals/Steward deal “fraudulent”.
“During its implementation, not only did the Government of Malta pay almost €400 million to the company to run the hospitals, barely a cent of the €200 million promised by Vitals/Steward in investment – via infrastructure, equipment and a new Gozo hospital – was spent. Millions down the drain that could and should have been spent for the benefit of all Maltese and Gozitans,” activists pointed out.
“The hospitals deal was just one of the myriad scandals uncovered by assassinated investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, who first highlighted the suspicious agreement in March 2015 – eight years ago.”
“Sadly, it doesn’t surprise us that today, more than a month after the court judgement, no-one has resigned, let alone been charged with corruption. Also unsurprising is the fact that Daphne Caruana Galizia has yet again been proven right.”
What do you make of the hanging money bag?
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