The Administrative Review Tribunal has turned down a request by John Dalli to be given the right of first refusal for the lease of farmland adjacent to his villa in rural Siġġiewi, with the disgraced former EU Commissioner having cited eavesdropping concerns in his application.
Dalli is the owner of a rural villa in the area known as Tal-Bur il-Kbir, with the plot including a portion of agricultural land. His two daughters, Louisa Dalli and Claire Gauci Borda, own an adjacent area, with the former registered as a full-time farmer and as residing in the Siġġiewi residence with her father.
Last November, the Lands Authority issued a call for tenders for the lease of another adjacent plot of agricultural land, and the Dallis insisted that they should have the right of first refusal given Louisa’s status as a registered full-time farmer and their ownership of the neighbouring fields.
But the Lands Authority refused them this status, citing their failure to submit the necessary documentation to prove ownership of the adjacent lands and proof of Dalli’s status as a full-time farmer.
The Dallis insisted that Louisa Dalli’s registration should suffice, but the receipts she presented showed that her stated agricultural activity – the harvest of olives – was minimal at best.
The family also cited security concerns, with the former EU commissioner stating that he received death threats “more than once” and that all were reported to the police and presenting…
