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How a red nose turns lawyer into Dr Buzz

April 9, 2018, 1:45 am
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Transformation: Stefan Frendo fulfilled his childhood desire of becoming both a lawyer and a clown. “I was being Dr Buzz without knowing. I was wasting my resources. At least now I believe that I’m directing them towards a good cause.” Photo: Mark Zammit Cordina

They smile a lot, provoke plenty of fun and mirth, and sometimes cry. Their mission is to ease the stress of suffering children. Claudia Calleja spoke to Dr Buzz, a trained clown for the NGO Dr Klown – and whose day job could not be more different. Smiles light up the serious faces of people lining the hospital corridors as they are passed by two men wearing a white lab coat… and a bright red nose. One of those men, also wearing oversized specs, is buzzing with enthusiasm as he trots on his imaginary horse. “People wouldn’t react to me this way if they saw me walking around in my morning suit,” says lawyer Stefan Frendo, who is wearing his clown doctor costume that instantly transforms him into Dr Buzz. He is one of the 28 clown doctors who volunteer to spread smiles among children in hospital in Malta and Gozo. They form part of Dr Klown, a voluntary organisation set up in 2010. A childhood dream As a child Dr Frendo wanted to become a lawyer… and a clown. “I think this was largely related to my upbringing. I come from a long line of lawyers. At the same time, my father used to laugh heartily when he saw clowns. And (presumably) to gain points with my father whom I simply...
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Eurozone investor morale falls, outlook "massively gloomier" - Sentix

April 9, 2018, 1:51 am
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Investor morale in the eurozone deteriorated for the third month in April, a survey showed on Monday, on concerns about a slowdown in global growth as trade tensions rise between the United States and China. Sentix's index for the eurozone fell to 19.6 in April from 24.0 in March. The Reuters consensus forecast was for a reading of 20.0. The drop was due to lower economic expectations, which turned negative for the first time since July 2016. "Even though the current situation is still rated as excellent ... the prospects for the future have become massively gloomier," Patrick Hussy, managing director at Sentix, said in a note. "The customs disputes, fuelled by US President Donald Trump, are leaving their traces." Trump predicted on Sunday that China would take down its trade barriers, expressing optimism despite escalating trade tensions between the world's two largest economies that have roiled global markets in the past week. The countries have threatened each other with tens of billions of dollars' worth of tariffs and Chinese officials have said this is not the time for negotiations. A Sentix index for Germany also fell for the third month, falling to 24.4 from 29.1 in...
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Prenatal lecture

April 9, 2018, 1:59 am
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A prenatal lecture is being hosted by a team of doctors, physiotherapists and certified health coaches at St Francis Medical Centre in Naxxar. The aim is to help improve the skills and confidence of mothers-to-be and prepare them for a positive birth experience. The lecture will cover the importance of a good diet and exercise regime and the physiological and emotional changes expected during pregnancy. The lecture is being held today at 6pm. Attendance is free of charge but registration is required. Send an e-mail to info@sfmc-malta.com and mark the subject of the e-mail as ‘Prenatal Lecture’. For more information, call 2143 4824.
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Watch: Cyclists find protected bird shot in Miżieb

April 9, 2018, 2:00 am
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A second protected Marsh Harrier was found shot in Miżieb on Sunday morning, one week into the spring hunting season for common quail.  The protected bird of prey was picked up by passing cyclists and taken to BirdLife Malta, who confirmed that it had sustained gunshot injuries to both its wings.  The discovery follows that of another shot Marsh Harrier in Gozo last Friday, with activists having also spotted an injured Pallid Harrier at Delimara on Easter Sunday, the first day of the 2018 spring hunting season.  In a statement, BirdLife noted that Miżieb was not the quail's ideal habitat, and that therefore any hunters spotted in that area were most likely going after protected species.  Marsh Harriers cross Malta during the spring as they migrate to their breeding grounds in northern Europe.  Prime Minister Joseph Muscat is on the record as saying he wants enforcement against poaching and hunting contraventions to intensify, and in a statement issued on Monday morning, the parliamentary secretariat for animal rights emphasised the volume of enforcement activity underway.  TIMES TALK: 'Spring hunting has an expiry date' More than 1,3000 inspections were carried out across Malta...
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Deutsche Bank's new CEO faces familiar questions over strategy

April 9, 2018, 2:08 am
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Christian Sewing must quickly come up with a coherent strategy for Deutsche Bank after the retail banking veteran was promoted to chief executive of Germany's largest lender. Sewing, 47, was appointed late on Sunday after a crisis meeting to discuss how to end three years of losses. He replaces Briton John Cryan who failed to meet cost targets, and his elevation could signal a retreat from decades of investment banking expansion. Sewing, who has been with Deutsche Bank since 1989, said Deutsche would pull back from areas where it was not sufficiently profitable. He said he would analyse how Deutsche Bank wants to position its investment bank in a difficult market environment but left open what structural measures he could take. Analysts and investors swiftly demanded clarity over where growth would come from. "What matters, and in our view Deutsche Bank has been missing for several years now, is a clearly defined strategy," JP Morgan analyst Kian Abouhossein said on Monday. "Deutsche Bank's problem is not the CEO, as speculated by the press, but different stakeholders with different interests, with little evidence of commitment to changing the organisation in the interests of...
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Exports down, imports up in February

April 9, 2018, 2:25 am
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Imports increased by €19.7 million, while exports decreased by €25.7 million, in February, the National Statistics Office reported on Monday. The increase in the value of imports was primarily from mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials (€45.1 million), and was partly outweighed by a decrease of €33.9 million in machinery and transport equipment. Mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials also accounted for the main decrease in the value of exports (€53.8 million). This decrease was partly outweighed by an increase of €13.3 million in machinery and transport equipment. Provisional data for international trade shows that the trade deficit in February stood at €156.9 million, up by €45.4 million when compared to the corresponding month of 2017.
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Four have 'unbelievable' escape after crashing into fence

April 9, 2018, 2:38 am
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Four people had an "unbelievable" escape from death when planks of timber skewered a small car after it collided with a fence. Traffic police in West Yorkshire posted pictures of the wrecked vehicle which, they said, crashed in the Stourton area of Leeds. The officers said on Twitter: "Four of the luckiest people our officers have ever seen following an RTC. "Unbelievable how this did not result in multiple fatalities. Thankfully luck was on everybody's side this evening." One person replied to the Tweet: "Reminds me of the game Kerplunk." The crash is understood to have happened on a roundabout near to junction 7 of the M621, on Sunday night.
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Apart from wages, employers have lowest costs in EU

April 9, 2018, 2:52 am
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Apart from wages, the costs that Maltese employers have to pay for labour are the lowest in the EU, according to information released by Eurostat on Monday. Non-wage costs include the employers’ social contributions plus any employment taxes regarded as labour costs – adjusted for government subsidies. In Malta, these amounted to just 6.7 per cent of the total cost of labour in 2017, compared to 24 per cent in the EU. France was on the other end of the scale, with 32.8 per cent. In 2017, average hourly labour costs in the whole economy (excluding agriculture and public administration) were estimated to be €26.8 in the European Union (EU) and €30.3 in the eurozone. However, this average masks significant gaps between EU member states, with the lowest hourly labour costs recorded in Bulgaria (€4.9) and the highest in Denmark (€42.5). Malta’s costs were €13.8 an hour, 2 per cent higher than a year before.
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Malta would have a surplus even without the IIP scheme, Finance Minister claims

April 9, 2018, 2:57 am
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Malta would have registered a budgetary surplus even without the cash-for-passports scheme, Finance Minister Edward Scicluna said on Monday. Addressing a meeting between MEUSAC and social partners, Prof. Scicluna said that preliminary economic indications showed that the country's consolidated fund surplus could still have been registered had the Individual Investor Programme not been in place. He did not clarify further, but said the economic potential of the country could have made good for the budgetary deficit. The cash-for-passport scheme – introduced just months into Labour's return to power in 2013 – is still shrouded in secrecy, with the government refusing to publish the names of those buying Maltese citizenship.A total of €163.5 million was earned through the IIP in 2016, according to the National Statistics Office. That same year, Malta registered a surplus of €112.9 million.Prof. Scicluna was presenting a draft consultation document of the National Reform Program. The Monday morning meeting follows the publication of the European Commission’s Country Specific Report and is meant to hash out how the government plans to address recommendations made by Brussels. “The...
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1,500 granted citizenship in 2016 - and 1 in every 3 was Russian

April 9, 2018, 3:00 am
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Around 500 Russians received a Maltese passport in 2016, with that country's citizens making up 33 per cent of the 1,495 people granted citizenship by the Maltese government that year.  The relative share of Russian citizens receiving Maltese passports eclipsed the next biggest groups, with UK citizens making up 8.4 per cent of Malta's share and Saudi Arabians 5.2 per cent.  Malta's figure represented a 131 per cent increase from the 646 citizenships granted in 2015, though it was significantly lower than the 3,315 and 4,660 figures for fellow small EU member states Luxembourg and Cyprus.  Data released by Eurostat on Monday revealed that European Union member states granted almost one million people citizenship that year.   The EU's total of 995,000 citizenships in 2016 was higher than the 841,000 granted in 2015 and 889,000 in 2014. Out of the total, 88 per cent came from a non-EU country or were stateless. One-third of all recipients of EU citizenship that year hailed from Europe, with 29.6 per cent coming from Africa, 20.9 per cent from Asia, 15.2 per cent from America and less than one per cent from Oceania. 1.3 per cent of recipients were stateless or had unknown...
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End of the road for 'most dangerous driver' after motorbike ride

April 9, 2018, 3:07 am
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The start of the week spelt more trouble for the driver, whose disregard for traffic regulations and court orders had made the media rounds, as he was handed a 16-month effective jail term for his latest brush with the law. Marius Camilleri, the 57-year driver, whose dangerous maneuvers at the wheel of his truck had hit the headlines few months ago, had been arraigned on Maundy Thursday after being spotted by traffic policemen riding a motorbike through Qormi, evidently in breach of his bail conditions. Read: 'Most dangerous' driver gets into trouble again... this time on two wheels Two officers had sighted the accused riding a black Agility 125 with suspicious-looking number plates in St Bartholomew Street, when one of his bail conditions had imposed an outright ban on driving. During his arraignment, the tearful driver admitted to having driven the motorbike, which bore a number plate belonging to another vehicle registered to someone who resided abroad. He further admitted to having been driving without a licence and without a valid insurance cover, besides committing the alleged offences during the operative period of two suspended sentences - as well as with relapsing. The...
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Watch: When is an organ donor declared dead? (ARTE)

April 9, 2018, 3:11 am
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Since the first heart transplant in 1967, organ transplantation has become an accepted practice. And yet the ethical and philosophical question around organ donation remain, with the concept of brain death at the heart of the matter: When can a potential organ donor be declared dead?
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The struggling smiles of Cambodian children

April 9, 2018, 3:14 am
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One of Jacob Sammut’s photos on display at the Malta Postal Museum and Arts Hub.

The Malta Postal Museum and Arts Hub is hosting a photographic exhibition on life in Cambodia by Jacob Sammut. Entitled Phnom Penh – The Struggling Smiles, the exhibition captures the daily lives of thousands of street children in the Cambodian capital, a city still reeling from the devastation wrought by Pol Pot and the legacy of the Khmer Rouge. Today, almost 40 years later, abuse and extreme poverty are still the rule of the day. Yet, Sammut finds that the smiles on the faces of the homeless and orphaned children in Phnom Penh defy this daily hardship. The exhibition runs until April 17. The museum at 135, Archbishop Street, Valletta,  is open from 10am to 4pm on weekdays and from 10am to 2pm on Saturdays. Entrance is free.
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Runaway train: seven Indian workers suspended after 13-km downhill ride

April 9, 2018, 3:20 am
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India's state-run railway has suspended seven workers after brakes failed on a 22-coach train carrying hundreds of passengers, letting it run freely in reverse for about 13 km, officials said on Monday. The train, en route from Ahmedabad in the western Indian state of Gujarat to Puri in Odisha state in the east, rolled downhill for about 45 minutes on Saturday before gradually slowing to a halt, the latest in a series of accidents involving the world's fourth-largest rail network. It was not immediately clear what speed the runaway train reached but no casualties or injuries were reported. Iron tools used to stop trains were not properly put in place, according to a senior railways official. "By the time the train had rolled down to the nearest station, it had slowed down drastically and it was brought to a halt with the help of wooden wedges," the official said, adding that passengers also helped stop the train. Indian Railways employs 1.3 million people and is filling tens of thousands of vacant positions for engine drivers, technicians, carpenters, track inspection crews and other roles related to improving safety in the world's fourth-largest network. Investigations were...
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Sick air-traffic controllers force Gatwick to close runway four times

April 9, 2018, 3:31 am
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Gatwick was forced to shut its runway when only one air traffic controller (ATC) was available, the airport said. Several inbound flights were diverted or delayed due to the staff shortage at the West Sussex airport. Only one controller out of the scheduled three was able to work in the control tower, reportedly due to sickness. Controllers need to take two one-hour breaks per shift, meaning the runway was closed from 1.40am-3.20am and 4.10am-5.20am on Sunday and Monday - four closures in total. Two inbound flights were diverted and several were delayed in the early hours of Sunday morning, with a further four delayed on Monday. There were no scheduled departures during those periods. Responsibility for air traffic control at Gatwick switched from Nats to Air Navigation Solutions in March 2016. Gatwick believes the staffing issue has been resolved. An airport spokesman confirmed the runway closed "due to a shortage of available air traffic controllers during the night shift". He added: "We worked closely with air traffic controllers and airlines to minimise the impact to passengers. We apologise for the inconvenience caused."
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Conference on sustainable building materials

April 9, 2018, 4:24 am
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The International Federation for Structural Concrete fib and the University of Malta are tomorrow organising an international conference on sustainable concrete materials and structures. Twenty-five international delegates and various ministers and parliamentary secretaries have also registered for this event. The scope of this conference is to further inform the Maltese building and concrete industry with new advanced and innovative materials and technologies that are being adopted both locally and overseas. The conference will be held tomorrow from 8.30am until 6pm at the Aula Magna, University of Malta, Valletta Campus. Pre-registration is required on registration@patabone.com or on 2122 3322.
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MCCF replies after questions raised over tree-planting

April 9, 2018, 6:55 am
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Updated 5.20pm with MCCF reaction The shadow minister for the environment, Jason Azzopardi, asked on Monday whether money from the Community Chest Fund was being used for tree-planting. He referred to a newspaper report where Qormi mayor Jesmond Auilina reportedly said that 120 trees had been planted in the locality thanks to the Community Chest Fund. Dr Azzopardi said that unless this was some kind of black humour, he was calling on the Community Chest Fund administrators to explain since when CCF money started being used to finance the planting of trees, and why Qormi was chosen. He also asked how much money had been spent each year in the last five years on tree-planting and whether other localities had been advised that they could tap the Community Chest Fund to plant trees. He also asked if it was morally acceptable for money collected for humanitarian causes to be siphoned off to plant trees and whether the Head of State approved of diverting CCF money to plant trees. Initiative was announced last October - MCCF In a reaction, the MCCF said the initiative, announced last October, has two aims.  Whoever donated €500 or more during L-Istrina, had the opportunity to not only...
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Speaker blocks Simon Busuttil's question on chief of staff's presence at Pilatus chairman's wedding

April 9, 2018, 7:22 am
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In this file photo former Opposition leader Simon Busuttil is seen speaking in Parliament during a debate on the Budget.

Updated Monday 6.45pm with a request for a ruling. A parliamentary question by former Opposition leader Simon Busuttil about Keith Schembri’s presence at Pilatus Bank chairman’s wedding has been disallowed by the Speaker of the House. Dr Busuttil’s question was addressed to the Prime Minister, asking him to state whether Mr Schembri had in fact attended the wedding. However, the former Nationalist Party leader was informed by the Speaker’s office that his question was rejected because it was “not relating to public affairs”. Dr Busuttil was told that, as per Parliament rules, questions could only be put to ministers about matters relating to public affairs or to any other member relating to any business of the House for which such minister or member is responsible. Dr Busuttil argued that the question was about something that had already been made public through media reports, fell under the Prime Minister’s responsibility and was of clear public interest. Dr Busuttil accused the Speaker of abusing his powers to block the question, the sources added. The decision ran contrary the Constitution, which described Malta as a democratic country that safeguarded people’s rights, Dr...
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Two dead, six critical, 44 others treated, as tourist bus hits low-lying branches in Żurrieq

April 9, 2018, 7:30 am
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Updated 7.14pm with the nationality of the victims. Two tourists were killed, six others were critically injured, and 44 were treated on Monday afternoon when a double-decker tourist bus hit low-lying tree branches in Żurrieq.  Tourists sitting on the bus' open-air top deck were hurt when they were hit by branches from the tree on Valletta Road, sources told Times of Malta. Two of those struck - a Belgian man, 62 and a Spanish woman, 37 - died on the spot, with six others critically hurt, Health Minister Chris Fearne confirmed.  The police said three of the six critically injured were Britons - two boys aged six and eight and a man aged 44. The others were a German woman, 31, an Italian woman, 72, and a 35-year-old man whose nationality is not yet known.  It is not known whether the tree branches the bus hit had been damaged by Sunday night's gale-force winds.  A fleet of 10 ambulances was dispatched to the scene at 4.15pm and Mater Dei Hospital started emergency protocol preparations following the incident. A specially set up helpline with number +356 2545 4286 was set up. Unhurt passengers, still in shock as they processed the afternoon's events, were taken away shortly...
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Heavy concrete block falls off trailer, damages road

April 9, 2018, 7:32 am
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The police had a weighty problem on their hands on Monday afternoon  - all 30 tonnes of it. A huge concrete block fell off a trailer as it was being carried along Corradino Road, Paola, causing part of the road surface to collapse. It reportedly damaged a water main. Traffic was diverted until investigations were held and a crane was brought to the scene. Fortunately, no one was injured. The concrete block is used to anchor fish pens at sea. 
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