Sinjuri,
Fuq talba tagħna stess, ilbieraħ ġejna infurmati mill-awtoritajiet bl-identitá tal-persuna li kienet stqarret magħhom li kienet tatna donazzjoni fil-proċess tagħha biex takkwista ċ-ċittadinanza Maltija. Ilbieraħ stess bgħatna lura d-donazzjoni lil dik il-persuna, li ma kinitx qaltilna li kienet qed tagħmel dik id-donazzjoni fil-proċess li tixtri ċ-ċittadinanza Maltija.
Hawn isfel issibu kopja tal-email li bagħat Dr Robert Aquilina lil dik il-persuna lbieraħ.
Aħna kontra li ċ-ċittadinanza ta’ pajjiżna tinbiegħ u ma rridu jkollna x’naqsmu xejn ma’ dik l-iskema li nqisu li hi immorali u illegali.
Dear Sir,
We have today reimbursed your €1,500 donation of the 13th November 2022 to us after learning from the authorities that it was made as part of the process when applying to become a Maltese citizen.
Though we are happy to welcome new Maltese citizens who make our country their home, we disagree that citizenship should be retailed and reserved for very wealthy people while other people, at least just as committed to the well-being of our community as you presumably are, are excluded because they are less rich.
A statement in Parliament by the responsible Minister revealed that Repubblika received your donation. In the absence of details, however, the public was given the mistaken impression that we have knowingly profited handsomely from a scheme we have consistently objected to.
As you no doubt will recall, at no point were we informed that your donation would form part of your application for Maltese citizenship.
We are assured by the authorities that your €1,500 donation was the only such contribution made to us by anyone for this purpose.
As campaigners for democracy and the rule of law we depend on the generous support of the public. We do not benefit from any public funding in spite of the fact that fighting corruption is self-evidently a public good. We cannot however, in the process of raising funding for our work, accept to become enablers to a scheme that we consider as unfair and unlawful.
Whilst we have no reason to believe that your donation was meant as anything other than to support our work, it is with regret that we feel we must decline it.
Respectfully,
Dr Robert Aquilina
President
