Editorial: The slow erosion of public trust

In an ideal world, politicians would never dream of allowing their integrity to be challenged? People should get involved with politics out of ideology, wanting to make a difference in the national interest.

But what if they have devious intentions? Or if they are pushed into it by others who intend to put puppets into power whose strings they can then pull? This is the whole point of elected politicians declaring their assets: to ensure there are no red flags which could indicate abuse of power or conflict of interest.

So far, there are two cases against Housing Minister Roderick Galdes involving properties obtained from a company that subsequently benefitted from a fairly hefty contract with his ministry.

A lesser claim – but none the less indicative of his lack of judgement – is that he “hobnobbed” with contractors.

Galdes insists that everything is in order in spite of evidence to the contrary – which is exactly the plausible deniability you would expect. He even went so far as to upload a video where he addressed his ‘friends’, claiming the cases were attacks on himself and his family.

Does he really fail to see the damage he is doing? It is clear he intends to cling to his ministerial position at any cost – not only to himself but to his party? Integrity matters as it is the contract of public trust on which politics depends. 

Once that trust is broken, the public would be right to fear that someone who has dabbled in deals would hardly have done so only once or twice: this is precisely why it should not even need a police investigation.

The other side of this sorry story is that Prime Minister Robert Abela has again proved himself incapable of understanding this fundamental point that politicians need to be (and appear) as transparent as possible.

We continue seeing it time and again: leaders standing by their men in spite of mounting evidence against them. Abela says he has “no doubt” in Galdes and sees no reason to dismiss him – overlooking the fact the minister should have at least considered resigning of his own accord once his lack of judgement was brought into question.

Abela insists that the government side still supports Galdes. It is a familiar line, repeated in scandal after scandal, as government MPs and public officials cling to office long after their actions have brought shame on the state they are meant to represent.

We know the ending can become much messier if more information were to become public, tightening the noose to the point of no return.

As prime minister, Abela’s job is not to simply stand by his man, but to insist on the highest standards, not only of behaviour but of perception.

Once a minister breaks the contract of trust, it reflects badly on all his colleagues.

In the meantime, Galdes and Abela are disingenuously sticking to the properties and how they were paid for, ignoring the broader issues of Malita’s finances, and tenders awarded to contractor Joseph Portelli’s company. And this is where the real damage is done.

When those in power refuse to act, refuse to draw lines, and refuse to accept responsibility, they send a clear message to the public: integrity is optional.

At a time when the international political arena is visibly sliding towards cynicism, authoritarianism, and transactional governance, Malta cannot afford to normalise ethical complacency.