“My government will take on the responsibility of implementing these recommendations,” a conciliatory Robert Abela declared in July 2021 when the Caruana Galizia inquiry was published. “I am giving my word, from now, that the principles that emerge from the recommendations of the report will be given life.”

Fast forward to March 2024. Another public inquiry report about another human sacrifice condemned Labour’s shortcomings. But it’s a different Abela facing the press – a belligerent, combative and hostile version. He promised, once more, he would implement all the recommendations of another public inquiry – the one he fought tooth and nail to prevent. One reporter challenged him: how can we trust you to implement these recommendations when you haven’t even implemented a single one from the Caruana Galizia inquiry?

Abela lost his cool. Visibly fuming, he retaliated: “If you are asking me to implement the recommendation that our country is a Mafia State – no, that I am not going to implement it.”

Abela spent a substantial part of his press conference denigrating, denouncing and discrediting the three members of the Caruana Galizia inquiry board. Instead of thanking them for their public service, he impugned their integrity, casting aspersions about their aims. He condemned their “behaviour”, which he was “extremely disappointed with”. He deplored the way in which they conducted their inquiry.

He contrasted the Caruana Galizia board with the Sofia one. He praised the Sofia inquiry board’s professionalism, adding: “I must distinguish it from what happened in the Caruana Galizia inquiry.” “If you ask me whether a public inquiry should be conducted in that way, it was conducted by…(pause) the board at the time, so I won’t mention any names, there were moments when I seriously worried about the integrity of that inquiry, about its objectives, the way it heard witnesses…

“This (the Sofia board) was three board members who acted with the greatest rectitude, integrity and professionalism. The other (the Caruana Galizia board) there were moments when, you know them yourselves…,” he continued, openly displaying his contempt for “the other” inquiry.

In 2021, Abela was a chastised, penitent, apologetic leader who spoke of healing deep wounds and turning over a new leaf. He pledged his commitment to implementing the recommendations and modernising the country. He appealed for unity. He warned about “descending into partisan political bickering” and promised that “today and in the future, as prime minister, I am certainly not going to do that”.

In 2024, Abela is now engaged in a vile assault on the Caruana Galizia board members. He has openly declared he has no intention of implementing that inquiry’s recommendations.

Isabelle Bonnici better watch Abela. He has promised another grieving family he would seek justice for them. He pledged he would implement the recommendations.

He promised public consultation and talks with the opposition on implementing them. Three years down the line and Abela hasn’t implemented a single recommendation. Instead, he’s heaping bilious scorn upon the inquiry board members.

Bonnici knows she cannot trust a word Abela says. As a woman, she must have sussed him out ages ago. She knows he’s the man who put her through hell by rejecting her repeated pleas for a public inquiry, bringing all sorts of hollow excuses. It can’t be done, it will clash head on with the investigation, he bluffed.

He’s the one who rudely walked past her after forcing his MPs to vote against a public inquiry, only to rush back to a party at Girgenti and then dash off on his yacht the following day.

He’s the one who attempted to discredit her and tell her she was letting others use her. Only when he was cornered by a nation’s wrath did he finally relent.

If it were up to him there would never have been a Sofia inquiry.

Isabelle Bonnici better watch Robert Abela. He has promised another grieving family he would seek justice for them- Kevin Cassar

Now that the inquiry Abela actively opposed has concluded, he’s making the same conciliatory gestures of July 2021.

He knows what’s necessary to diffuse public anger. He’s simply averting responsibility, defending himself and protecting his ministers by scapegoating the odd CEO. He’s thrown David Xuereb, Victor Carachi, Paul Abela and Malta Enterprise’s Kevin Camilleri and Peter Borg under the bus.

Jean Paul Sofia’s death was a direct result of the utter and abysmal failures of Labour’s government.

Daphne Caruana Galizia’s murder was the result of Labour’s failures too. Muscat’s cabinet was held collectively responsible for her assassination.

Yet, Abela declared in July 2021: “I am not expecting anyone to resign from cabinet.” He kept Muscat’s ministers in his cabinet. Those same ministers responsible for Daphne’s death enabled Sofia’s. But, again, Abela isn’t expecting them to resign. He won’t sack them either. He’s putting all the blame on a few fall guys. And when everybody’s moved on and forgotten about the inquiry, he’ll surely give them some new cushy job as compensation for taking the hit.

In July 2021, Abela said he’d consider compensation for the Caruana Galizia family. It hasn’t happened. He’s now promising to “discuss privately with Bonnici” the issue of compensation. Mrs Bonnici beware – the man can’t be trusted.

Abela couldn’t even mention the name of Sofia during his press conference. Yet, he pledged to implement the inquiry recommendations out of respect for “the deceased”. That implies he has no respect for the other deceased, Caruana Galizia.

Abela always blames others for his broken promises. He protested it’s not his fault that none of the Caruana Galizia recommendations have been fully implemented. Those who clamoured for implementation were the same people who obstructed his efforts to implement them, he claimed.

When one man, the prime minister, single-handedly decides which public inquiry to endorse and which to trash, that’s not a democracy anymore. When that prime minister is Abela, the inquiry he endorses today might be the same one he’ll trash next year. Bonnici should remember that.

Abela promises much but he delivers nothing.

Easter reminds us that human crookedness put an innocent to death, yet, He emerged victorious. May the spirit of Easter instill in Bonnici the courage and hope to persevere in her fight for victory against the malignancy of evil.