Watch tonight: Ramona Attard and Darren Carabott debate live on Il-Każin
Watch the two MPs go head-to-head at 7pm
Does this government uphold or undermine state institutions?
It's a question Darren Carabott and Ramona Attard will be debating when they go head-to-head tonight in a live debate hosted by Il-Każin and Times of Malta.
The two MPs will be presenting their views on a motion proposed by Carabott: 'This government does not respect state institutions'. [Dan il-gvern ma jirrispettax l-istituzzjonijiet ta’ pajjiżna]
Hosted by Jon Mallia in front of a live audience, the debate will also be streamed live on both Il-Każin and Times of Malta’s YouTube channels, for everyone to watch from home. It begins at 7pm.
Viewers will be able to cast their vote before, during and at the end of the debate, with Carabott and Attard tasked with winning people over to their position.
The debate comes as negotiations to appoint a new chief justice have effectively ground to a halt, following partisan bickering and a bombshell letter from a sitting judge about Prime Minister Robert Abela.
That letter by Judge Wenzu Mintoff was exclusively revealed by Times of Malta and alleged Abela was using the chief justice post as a political weapon. Both the judge and Abela are now being investigated.
In the meantime, the government and Opposition have been unable to agree on a new chief justice and both sides have said they want to amend the current law - which requires a two-thirds majority in parliament - to break the deadlock. It remains unclear, however, what form that anti-deadlock mechanism will take.
Carabott, an Opposition MP who chairs parliament's influential Public Accounts Committee, believes Judge Mintoff’s letter is a clear sign that the government is intent on snuffing out judicial independence.
"A judge knows the rules. He knows there is a clear rule stating he cannot speak to cabinet. And yet he broke it to do what he believed was just," Carabott said ahead of the debate.
"We have a judge stating, under oath, that our prime minister bases decisions on whether or not they will help the Opposition leader, not in the public interest... It is surreal to see the government once again turn on institutions that criticise it."
Attard, on the other hand, says it is preposterous to suggest that the government has no respect for state institutions.
"This is a government that introduced unprecedented reforms," the government MP and former Labour Party president told Il-Każin.
Il-Każin is a live debate show held once a month in front of a live audience. Following a collaboration deal with Times of Malta, award-winning journalists Jon Mallia and Mark Laurence Zammit will alternate as hosts.
The final segment of each show will see audience members ask guests questions directly.