Frank Zammit, the private secretary to former EU Commissioner John
Dalli, was originally earmarked to be Malta's next ambassador to the
Vatican by Joseph Muscat's administration but appears to have been
overlooked for the post.The decision not to appoint him was taken by the Prime Minister after foreign minister George Vella objected to his appointment, ostensibly over the questions this appointment would raise in the aftermath of revelations on John Dalli's 2012 trips to the Bahamas.
Dalli is currently an advisor to the government on health policy, and is posted in an office at Mater Dei Hospital.
Zammit, who worked closely with John Dalli for years, resigned from his post after the former Commissioner was forced to resign by EC president José Manuel Barroso following an OLAF investigation alleging he was aware of an attempt to trade in influence.
His involvement with Dalli in 2004 at the time of his party leadership bid, led him to be ostracised by the Gonzi administration and the Labour opposition.
Zammit was a former Nationalist mayor in the Labour stronghold of Marsa, and a former candidate and activist for the Nationalist Party. He was synonymous with John Dalli, accompanying him everywhere, and in recent years having garnered a reputation for his extensive knowledge of the Vatican and his rapport with various figures in the Vatican administration.
MaltaToday can confirm that in March of this year he was given the impression that he was seriously being considered for the role of Malta's next ambassador to the Vatican.
This decision appears to have been revoked after the revelation that the former EU commissioner had visited the Bahamas in the summer of 2013 under suspicious circumstances.