Some have the ability to turn everything they touch into gold. Others, however, have the Sadim – the opposite of Midas – touch, whereby what they handle goes awry. Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri is increasingly risking falling in the latter category.
He had stubbornly opted to stand behind former prison director Alex Dalli who was facing a barrage of serious accusations and on whose watch we saw a number of suicides at Corradino Correctional Facility.
Not long afterwards, Dalli’s successor, Robert Brincau, was charged in court over an incident during which a gun was used. When both men were forced to go, Camilleri never publicly apologised, much less assume political responsibility.
It now turns out that the man who used to be second in command under Dalli continues to receive a salary from prison even if he is supposed to have been removed almost a year ago.
The minister has been insisting that Randolph Spiteri was transferred to another unit within his ministry. However, Times of Malta is informed that, even though he does not report for work at Corradino, Spiteri remains listed on the prison books as head of administration and operations and receives a salary from prison.
Spiteri was not among those mentioned by Camilleri when he was asked in parliament last February to list all the officials transferred from prison to another government job over the past four years.
The ministry still says that Spiteri does not work in prison anymore and that a new call would be issued once the prison human resources “structure is formally approved”.
However, in view of the information that has just surfaced, an explanation would be in order.
Just days ago, we learnt that deputy police commissioner Ramon Mercieca resigned from the board of the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) and has not returned to work with the force since a photo of him attending MP Rosianne Cutajar’s baby gender reveal party emerged last month.
The event took place four days after thousands of WhatsApp messages were leaked revealing her intimate relationship with Yorgen Fenech at a time when she was publicly defending corruption claims against him. Mercieca’s presence could amount to a breach of at least two of the “offences against discipline” listed in the Police Act.
The law deems it a breach of confidence if a police officer engages in “any activity which is likely to interfere with the loyal and impartial discharge of his duties or which is likely to give rise to the impression among members of the public that it may so interfere”. An officer who “improperly uses his character and position as a member of the force for his private advantage” renders himself by law guilty of a corrupt practice. In his official capacity, Mercieca is responsible for most of the country’s police operations.
In 2020, he was entrusted with the implementation of the force’s transformation strategy, which aims to restore public trust in the corps. The police commissioner should lose no time in setting in motion the procedure provided by law to deal with such conduct unbecoming an officer.
And this comes after the Armed Forces of Malta (which also falls under the wing of the home affairs minister), is once again under international scrutiny for failing to help migrants in distress.
The home affairs ministry is one of the toughest, complex and most demanding. It is therefore essential for Camilleri to be completely transparent and act right away against any errant officers.