Referendum result cannot be ignored, says CNI chairman

A referendum result cannot be cancelled out by an election victory, according to CNI chairman Albert Leone Ganado.

In an interview with Crossroads, published with The Sunday Times today, Professor Leone Ganado said: "I personally believe you cannot ignore a referendum, but then if you win an election you can call another referendum to confirm or reject it. For me, that is the fair way of doing it...

"But I don't believe, then, that if we have a referendum that gets us into Europe that a party should propose another to get us out of Europe. That would be the most disastrous situation for the Maltese..."

Professor Leone Ganado also said boycotting the referendum would create problems within the island and damage future relations with Europe.

In the interview, the CNI chairman spells out his opposition to EU membership, saying Brussels is full of self-serving institutions "whose main aim is the self-preservation of the functionaries within them" who are not accountable to their own parliaments.

However, on the Labour Party's partnership option, Professor Leone Ganado said he had only met Alfred Sant once "so I don't know what he really means", though he presumed the Labour leader had some indications that certain positions are possible".

The CNI chairman also believes that the Irish, with their initial opposition to the Nice Treaty, have reinforced the concept of neutrality with regard to an option over whether to commit military personnel to the EU's rapid reaction force - though he questions whether Malta would have managed to do the same.

Professor Leone Ganado also talks of his disappointment at Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici's decision to stand down as CNI chairman to join Dom Mintoff's Front Maltin Inqumu.

"If I had to give him my personal opinion I would have told him 'don't touch Mr Mintoff'. I tried to convey this, but on the other hand I still have enormous respect for Dr Mifsud Bonnici," Professor Leone Ganado said.