The conclusions of an inquiry into the Vitals hospitals deal should be made public “for the sake of transparency", Robert Abela has said.
“I believe that the document should be available for public consumption,” the prime minister told reporters shortly after a court heard that the inquiry is now at the Attorney General’s office.
The probe, which began in late 2019, was tasked with looking into any criminal acts committed by Joseph Muscat or members of his cabinet in relation to the privatisation of three state hospitals.
It is up to Attorney General Victoria Buttigieg to decide whether or not to publish the conclusions of the inquiry. Her predecessor, Peter Grech, had opted to do so when urged to publish Egrant inquiry conclusions in 2018 by Muscat, who at the time was prime minister.
Contracts to privatise the hospitals were annulled by a court last year, which concluded that top government officials had colluded with the concessionaires, against the public interest.
Muscat, who led the government at the time as prime minister, has fought tooth and nail against the magisterial inquiry, saying that the magistrate leading it is politically motivated. Abela has lent his weight to those arguments, saying that the timing of its conclusion reeks of “political terrorism” by the judiciary, as it will condition voters ahead of the June 8 MEP elections.
A court heard on Tuesday morning that the inquiry was concluded on Thursday, April 24 and sent to the attorney general’s office the next day.
Speaking on Tuesday, Abela repeated that he did not believe the timing of the inquiry weeks before the June 8 MEP elections, was coincidental.
“In my opinion, it was a message,” he said.
When asked what he would do if the inquiry singled out former or current ministers or top civil servants for their role in the hospitals deal, Abela said his decision would depend on what the inquiry said about those individuals.
Abela said he was speaking hypothetically but only spoke about current members of the government and civil servants.
Castille sources later said Abela was likely referring to comments made by lawyer Jason Azzopardi on Facebook.
The former PN minister and lawyer has posted about the inquiry several times but sources specifically pointed to a specific status update published on Tuesday morning.
“In cabinet right now, it was mentioned that there is a minister who has had criminal action ordered against him after an inquiry,” Azzopardi said.
Azzopardi published that post at 11.01am. At the time, cabinet was being held in public and hearing from business leaders about the country's economic policies.
Abela was also asked to react for comments made by the Chamber of Advocates who accused the prime minister of unleashing a direct attack on the judiciary.
The prime minister reacted by saying part of his job was to act as a check on other institutions, adding that he was doing so “as cautiously as possible”
He said the Chamber of Advocates often sway towards the “establishment” if not part of it.
“Therefore everyone can arrive to their own conclusions,” he said.
He said everyone will be able to give their own analysis on event, when Malta goes to the polls.
Muscat had fought tooth and nail against the magisterial inquiry, saying that the magistrate leading it is politically motivated. Abela had lent his weight to those arguments, saying that the timing of its conclusion reeks of “political terrorism” by the judiciary.
A court heard on Tuesday morning that the inquiry was concluded on Thursday, April 24 and sent to the attorney general’s office the next day.
Nationalist Party leader Bernard Grech has slammed Abela for lashing out at the magistrate responsible for the inquiry.
"They are attacking our country’s institutions, because they are working," Grech said.
"Abela and Muscat first did everything to stop us from taking our hospitals back, and now they are doing all they can to stop those responsible for this theft from paying the price. Justice must be done if you are the prime minister, an ex prime minister or a regular citizen," he said.