Robert Abela is rushing through parliament a bill that grants immunity to senior civil servants who collaborate with Labour ministers in their criminal endeavours. Permanent secretaries and other high-ranking civil servants are meant to protect the state from the malevolent actions of the more malignant politicians entrusted with a ministerial portfolio.
But Frank Fabri collaborated with Justyne Caruana to enable her to rob the state of tens of thousands of euros to hand over to her boyfriend. Fabri signed the contract for Danjel Bogdanovic when he knew he was unable to complete the task assigned.
When Caruana was caught, Fabri covered up for her, misleading the standards commissioner by lying blatantly in his testimony. Fabri was forced to resign because of his crucial part in the scandal. But, within just a few months, Abela rewarded Fabri for his loyalty, appointing him general manager at the Institute of Tourism Studies.
Barely months later, Fabri was given a second more lucrative gift – he was made CEO of Aquatic Resources Malta and paid over €80,000. His package included €8,000 per year as an expense allowance, €1,800 per year for communication, €4,658 annually for a car, and a 10 per cent disturbance allowance. He also gets a 15 per cent performance bonus as well as an additional 15 per cent as an allowance for “research projects”.
Those rewards for Fabri were a message from Abela for all high-ranking civil servants – if you’re on our side, we’ll reward you; if you stick your neck out to cover up for us, we’ll make it worth your while.
When Joseph Rapa and Ronald Mizzi faced criminal charges, other permanent secretaries and civil servants started to get cold feet. They worried about cooperating with or closing their eyes to their political bosses’ abuse. Abela acted quickly to allay their fears. He swiftly ordered his justice minister to draw up legislation to put their minds at rest. That legislation was drawn up and tabled in record time.
Abela is giving civil servants a cast-iron guarantee they will never be held accountable for any wrongdoing – whether through commission or omission. Abela robbed them of any pretext for refusing to collaborate with the demands of their political masters – whether legal or illegal, licit or illicit.
On the fifth anniversary of his rise to power, Abela declared he would use that power to provide immunity to all those who engage in Labour’s wrongdoing, who enable abuse, who facilitate crime. Abela pledged that “those who are the targets of the politics of hate just because they carry out the government’s politics will be defended”.
If the government’s politics consists of handing tens of thousands of euros to the partners of ministers for roles they are incapable of and which they will never perform, surely those responsible should be held accountable.
Both Bogdanovic and Amanda Muscat were paid tens of thousands of euros for jobs they couldn’t do and never did – simply because they were the partners of Abela’s ministers.
Rosianne Cutajar was given a fake job which she was unqualified for and which she never did. Pierre Fenech, who gave her that phantom job and lied about it, is still protected by Abela.
ITS CEO Fenech, Caruana’s permanent secretary Fabri and Clint Camilleri’s chief of staff, Michael Buhagiar should face prosecution for their part in the abuse they enabled. So do countless others who actively participated in Labour’s orgy of corruption or who turned a blind eye to it.
Abela knows they deserve to answer for their active part in the wrongdoing or their dereliction of duty. They should face the full force of the law for their failure to protect the nation from the insatiable greed of their political masters. Instead, Abela seeks to pervert the course of justice.
Robert Abela has lost all sense of reason- Kevin Cassar
Nobody in his right mind would give a blanket pardon for every wrongdoing to the most senior civil servants, on the pathetic pretext that they are carrying out “the government’s politics”. When the government’s politics is blatant abuse, untrammelled cronyism and nepotism, and rapacious looting of the state, those civil servants have an obligation to prevent it, to stop it. Failure to do so makes them complicit in those crimes.
In the face of Abela’s shameless bill, the nation is being buried in an avalanche of lies.
The Labour Party issued a statement declaring that “the reform the government intends to implement is in favour of greater transparency and the rule of law”.
“It will provide safeguards and eliminate room for abuse,” Labour announced.
It will do the exact opposite. It will encourage abuse.
Abela’s own rhetoric was far less restrained. He attacked “the forces of darkness”, he blasted the opposition that “revels in hate”. He dubbed civil society members “hypocrites” and “the extremist faction of the PN”. He lambasted them for wanting to “crucify others”. He spoke of “red lines” being crossed.
“We are all with you, I am with you, and we will defend you against this persecution – an attack against you is an attack on all of us,” Abela told his ministers and senior civil servants. “I will not allow it, over my dead body – I will not allow them to destroy my ministers.”
Abela has lost all sense of reason. Nobody should be immune from prosecution for crimes they commit while in office.
Abela’s bill, according to Labour, will provide “greater transparency”, “clear safeguards” and “eliminate abuse”.
The truth is that Abela’s bill encourages abuse by dismantling all safeguards and removing all accountability. Labour smothers the truth in lies.
In July 2022, Abela pledged to implement the recommendations of the Daphne Caruana Galizia inquiry. One of those recommendations was the introduction of a law criminalising obstruction of justice by government officials. Another was the introduction of a specific abuse of office law for public officials.
Three years later, Abela has not only failed to honour his pledge to implement those recommendations but he’s now gone a step further. He’s embarked on a mission to demolish all of the existing safeguards against abuse by public officials.
Abela intends to make all criminal behaviour by public officials perfectly legitimate, paving the way for yet more strident abuse by his ministers.
Kevin Cassar is a professor of surgery.