Chris Fearne has resigned from his post as deputy prime minister and ended his bid for the European Commission after being charged with fraud in a hospital scandal.
Malta's deputy prime minister, Chris Fearne, has resigned and ended his European Commission bid after being charged with fraud in a hospital scandal.
In his resignation letter, Fearne denied wrongdoing but said he must put Malta before everything else.
"I want to be clear, I am taking this step not because I have any doubts on my innocence, but because it is the right thing to do," Fearne wrote.
Fearne resigned days after news emerged that he is facing charges of fraud and misappropriation of funds related to an investigation into the government's 2015 deal to turn over management of three hospitals to a private company. The concession was annulled by the courts last year in a judgment that cited fraud.
Fearne, who was a junior health minister at the time of the deal, is one of a number of past and present officials facing charges, including former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat. Muscat also denies wrongdoing.
The hospital scandal has rocked Malta's political establishment and led to calls for the resignation of Prime Minister Robert Abela. However, Abela has so far refused to step down.
In his resignation letter, Fearne asked Abela to withdraw his candidacy to be Malta's candidate for the European Commission.
Abela has not yet commented on Fearne's resignation or his request to withdraw his candidacy for the European Commission.
Fearne's resignation is a major blow to Abela's government, which is already facing a number of challenges, including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
It is unclear what impact Fearne's resignation will have on the hospital scandal investigation. However, it is likely to put further pressure on Abela to address the allegations of corruption and wrongdoing.
The hospital scandal is the latest in a series of corruption scandals that have plagued Malta in recent years. In 2017, former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat was forced to resign after his chief of staff was implicated in the assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.
The hospital scandal has once again raised concerns about the rule of law in Malta and the extent to which corruption has infiltrated the country's political and economic institutions.
