Commission to meet today

President Guido de Marco is today expected to preside over a meeting of the Commission for the Administration of Justice to determine how to deal with the motion for impeachment against the two judges charged with accepting bribes in return for reducing a drug trafficker's jail term.

Sources said the meeting, to be held at Verdala Castle at 6 p.m., was expected to determine the logistics of how the case of Chief Justice Noel Arrigo and Mr Justice Patrick Vella would be heard and whether some members would decide to abstain from the process.

Although no agenda had been fixed for the meeting, sources said it would deal exclusively with how to handle the case.

A motion for the impeachment of the judges, signed by the prime minister and opposition leader, was presented to the Speaker on Monday night.

Meanwhile, Prof. de Marco, acting on the advice of Prime Minister Eddie Fenech Adami, has designated Mr Justice Joseph David Camilleri to perform the functions of the Chief Justice while the process takes its course.

Mr Justice Camilleri, 57, has served as a judge for the past 19 years after having been appointed a magistrate in 1977.

The sources said the constitution enabled the government to appoint an acting chief justice when the incumbent could not perform his duties.

The Chamber of Advocates yesterday issued a statement describing recent developments as an institutional crisis.

"Events that have unfolded over the past days when the Chief Justice and another judge were investigated and later arraigned in court over offences that they had allegedly committed in connection with their judicial duties, have created in themselves an unprecedented serious institutional crisis in the administration of justice, which could seriously affect the way the citizens look at the legal system of our country."

The chamber appealed to everyone involved in the search for the truth to do everything necessary to ensure all the facts are established.

"While the chamber would like to express full confidence in the institutions involved in this search, which is so difficult and filled with responsibility, it augurs that everyone will carry out their duties to the full, if need be, with personal sacrifice, so that the institutions of the country, particularly the courts, would be safeguarded and the respect of the people towards them would remain untarnished."

The chamber stressed the need for this "institutional crisis" to be resolved as soon as possible, with the necessary transparency and clarity, so that the interests of the administration of justice would be protected.

The Chamber said it was making such a statement while obviously bearing in mind the constitutional and legal guarantees that the people under investigation were entitled to.

Sources said one of the major concerns for policy makers, the government and the judiciary itself was the effect a lengthy impeachment process could have on government's drive to reform the courts and clear the backlog.

"The concern is that with Chief Justice Arrigo and Mr Justice Vella out of the picture, there will be delays in the Criminal Court and in the Court of Appeal. It is a very delicate situation."

Sources said that although every effort would be made to speed up the process, the matter had to be dealt with in a calm and professional manner.

The process of the commission hearing could take weeks, possibly one or two months, sources said. Its conclusions would then be referred to parliament.

"It is very difficult to predict how long it will take as this case is unprecedented in every sense."

When the case starts being heard by the commission, probably over the coming days, the prime minister or the police commissioner will present the commission with evidence saying why they believe the judges should be impeached.

The commission is made up of Prof. de Marco, the Chief Justice is the vice-president while the members are Mr Justice Camilleri - now also the acting chief justice, Mr Justice Vincent Degaetano, magistrates Silvio Meli and Dennis Montebello, retired judge Victor Caruana Colombo, Dr Joe Micallef Stafrace, Dr Joe Azzopardi and Attorney General Anthony Borg Barthet.

In past cases, there were instances in which members of the commission decided to abstain from the case.

Although Prof. de Marco will be chairing today's meeting, it is not known whether he will opt to abstain from chairing the commission in the proceedings against the two judges.

The sources pointed out that Prof. de Marco's predecessor, Ugo Mifsud Bonnici, had opted not to chair the commission in the previous disciplinary cases because of the later role he may have been asked to play in a possible impeachment.

The commission in those cases was therefore chaired by its vice-president, the Chief Justice, but that option is not available in this case.

If Prof. de Marco decides to abstain from the process, the commission's proceedings could be chaired by acting chief justice Camilleri or by another member of the commission.

The President's Office yesterday added the meeting to Prof. de Marco's official engagements.

If the commission believes there is a prima facie case to support the impeachment, after hearing evidence from the prime minister or the police commissioner, it will then inform parliament to start impeachment proceedings.

A two-thirds majority is then required for the impeachment motion to be carried.

Chief Justice Arrigo and Mr Justice Vella were arraigned on Sunday afternoon and charged with accepting bribes and with revealing official secrets in relation to a sentence handed down by the Court of Criminal Appeal against Mario Camilleri on July 5. The charges were aggravated by the fact that they were public officers duty bound to prevent the crime.

Both judges pleaded not guilty.

The two judges on Monday wrote to Prof. de Marco saying they would like to refrain from carrying out their duties.

Both said they were not resigning from their posts.