Malta’s recent record on public governance is continuously under scrutiny because of serious incidents that attracted the criticism and censure of local and international institutions. Over the last two years, significant damage-repair efforts have been underway, with much posturing about how Malta is strengthening the fundamentals of governance.

Yet, the business is unfinished and needs to be speeded up.

The visit of EU Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders has served as a reality check on what has been achieved so far and what still needs to be done. Meeting the commissioner, Prime Minister Robert Abela acknowledged that Malta has gone through “some difficulties” in the last few years but said the country has “learnt a lot”.

Abela told Reynders, for example, that the government was working to reduce court delays by proposing a one-year limit on the compilation of evidence of criminal offences.

Law reform has been on the to-do list of every administration for at least three decades. Reforms have, at best, been marginal, and individual citizens and businesses still suffer the consequences of inefficient legal processes.

Protecting journalists from bullying tactics by influential individuals is another hallmark of good public governance. While Abela is looking forward to introducing “game-changing” legislation to protect journalists, he still needs to convince them about the effectiveness of these changes.

Reynders welcomed the legislative efforts to improve the media landscape and working environment for journalists but seems to have concerns about the ability of the government to “transform discussion into effective legislation”.

Malta’s good governance – or otherwise – ripples out beyond its shores. Among the points he raised, Reynders noted that Malta had only frozen a minimal amount of Russia-owned assets as part of efforts to hold the Russian state accountable for the invasion of Ukraine. Being part of the EU means we must adhere to agreed policies, whether we like them or not. More importantly, if we want to be credible, we must show that once we decide on doing something, we actually carry it through.

Reynders noted that Malta had only frozen a minimal amount of Russia-owned assets as part of efforts to hold the Russian state accountable for the invasion of Ukraine

While freezing Russian assets may sound like a moral imperative, it involves significant political, economic and legal risks. Some experts argue that the legal ground is shaky, as freezing assets could imply breaking bilateral treaties to protect individuals and businesses against expropriation. It is likely to lead to retaliatory tactics by Russia.

Still, the European Commission understandably expects all member states to implement commonly-binding directives in good faith. It isn’t easy to imagine how Russian oligarchs had only €220,000 worth of assets in Malta.

The justice commissioner wants to revisit Malta to give more momentum to public governance reforms that remain undone. He wants to meet with civil society groups ahead of a follow-up report on the state of the rule of law expected in July. The government must not just tolerate civil society groups clamouring for reform. It must consider them as catalysts to improve the governance of the country.

Good public governance involves a whole spectrum of activity: the enforcement of formal and informal rules, the forging of robust policies and practices, as well as interaction between non-state institutions, citizens and countries. It covers ethical conduct, respect for law, efficiency and effectiveness, transparency, sound financial management and accountability. 

Raising the standards of public governance is a task too onerous and extensive to be a partisan issue.

The political parties need to learn from past mistakes and work in tandem to make Malta a respectable jurisdiction again in the eyes of its citizens, international institutions and investors. Future prosperity depends on it.