Government, Opposition defend new Ombudsman's appointment

The government and the opposition agree that the appointment of Chief Justice Emeritus Joseph Said Pullicino as Ombudsman is fully in line with the Constitution.

Doubts on the legitimacy of the appointment of Dr Said Pullicino to succeed Joseph Sammut were raised by lawyer Anna Mallia who claimed the choice was "illegal and an infringement of our Constitution".

Writing in Maltatoday last week, Dr Mallia picked a constitutional clause which lays down that a member of the Broadcasting Authority shall not be eligible for appointment to any public office within a period of three years from the day on which he last held office.

Dr Said Pullicino ended his term as the BA's chairman just months ago.

The Constitution does not define the Ombudsman as a "public officer", a term used with reference to civil servants.

A spokesman for the Prime Minister's office told The Times the Ombudsman is a parliamentary officer answerable to the House of Representatives and, therefore, his office "is not a public office under the jurisdiction of the Public Service Commission".

Opposition Leader Alfred Sant answered practically on the same lines. "The clause is not referable to the Ombudsman because he is not a member of the civil service," he said, adding that the issue had been brought up in discussions with Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi about Dr Said Pullicino's appointment.

The former chief justice had been informally approached about the matter before his formal appointment being sealed. "I am comfortable with my new appointment as the law is very clear on what constitutes a public officer and, therefore, there is no infringement," he said yesterday.

The Ombudsman Act itself lays down that a public officer cannot become Ombudsman, given that he is appointed to carry out administrative investigations. The law states that "public officer" has the same meaning attached to it in the Constitution.

"It's not a problem of substance but one of form," the former chief justice said.