Abela: Neville Gafà's attacks on ambassadors were unacceptable
Prime Minister clarifies reason he got rid of the highly divisive OPM worker
Neville Gafà was made to resign from his government job for badmouthing ambassadors and writing articles that breached the government’s principles, Prime Minister Robert Abela has said.
Gafà resigned from a customer care role within the Office of the Prime Minister in October.
His resignation came shortly after he published an article on his personal blog that described the “new fashion” of gender fluidity and non-binary identity in schools as madness disguised as enlightenment.
In an interview with Times of Malta, Abela said he has regular meetings with the LGBTIQ community, and Gafà's comments were simply not on.
The prime minister revealed a second reason for Gafà resignation – badmouthing foreign ambassadors who have been key stakeholders in the government’s efforts to clean up Malta’s reputation abroad.
He said the government had made huge efforts to clean up Malta’s reputation, which Abela acknowledged was “not stellar” in the past.
Abela said Malta has since gone on to preside over the OSCE, sit on the United Nations Security Council and preside over the Council of Europe.
The prime minister, however, seemed less concerned about Gafà hardline stance against the Valletta’s Great Siege Monument being used as a memorial to slain journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.
Gafà was caught on camera removing tributes to the journalist hours after he eighth anniversary of her murder, in a move that has angered various embassies that placed wreaths.
Abela failed to condemn Gafà actions, arguing that this took place within the context of a debate on whether the monument should be used as a memorial for the journalist.
The prime minister said if anyone feels their right to freedom of expression has been breached over the monument's use as a memorial, they can always go to court to litigate that - something he said has not happened in this case.
When asked why he has never visited the bomb site in Bidnija where Caruana Galizia was killed, the prime minister said he showed his respect to her family in other, less visible ways.
He said he would like to see a monument to the late journalist erected at that Bidnija site and asked why activists have made no effort to have one built there, instead of using the Great Siege Monument as a makeshift memorial site.
The vast majority of Maltese irrespective of their political persuasion, he said, want the Great Siege Monument to only be used to mark Malta's historic 1565 military victory.