Civil society group Repubblika has published a series of proposals it says are needed to help fight corruption in elections. 

Unveiled on Tuesday, the document outlines a series of measures that need to be taken to "challenge the status quo and the underlying consensus of tolerance" for certain misconduct. 

Addressing a press conference, Repubblika president Robert Aquilina said the most basic element of a functioning democracy is free and fair elections. 

"In Malta, the abuse of what is referred to as the power of incumbency is not a new problem. But, certainly, this is no excuse to not challenge the status quo and the widespread tolerance for this sort of misconduct. 

"Without a doubt, the fact that elections fall exclusively within the remit of the politicians themselves does not help," Aquilina said. 

What are the proposals?

1. The existing law should no continue to be ignored, Repubblika said. Before any changes are implemented, the law already in place should be followed and enforced. The NGO expects enforcement agencies to step up their efforts to actively act against corruption in elections.

2. The NGO called for better resources to be provided to the independent media and civil society for these to monitor campaigns and elections better and call out unethical behaviour. It also called for the electoral process to be open to observers that are not affiliated with any political party. 

3. Another proposal is for parliament to have a fixed term to eliminate the unfair advantage that a party in government always has over rival parties not involved in the decision to call an election. 

4. It proposed that there should be mechanisms to make it more difficult for the power of incumbency to kick off once the fifth and final year of an administration kicked off, or as from when the date of an election is announced if this is called earlier.

The NGO said it longed for it to be illegal for the government to:

  • make non-essential appointments in public entities;
  • commence a selection process for promotions or appointments in public entities;
  • issues development permits faster than at any other point in a legislature;
  • earmark public land for private interests.

5. Repubblika also wanted the NAO's competence to include monitoring of the use and misuse of public funds for partisan campaigning. 

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