Voting debacle will not overshadow 'corrupt' power station tender - Muscat
Labour leader Joseph Muscat and his deputy Anglu Farrugia this morning kept up their attack against the government and the Speaker over their actions in parliament on Thursday-Friday night, but Dr Muscat said the issue would not be allowed to overshadow the 'corrupt' power station extension contract.
Dr Muscat said that what happened on Thursday, when a government MP voted with the Opposition but the vote was not declared, showed the government's instability. A strong government did not do the shameful acts witnessed on Thursday-Friday night, he said.
Dr Muscat recalled that he had first protested about the conflict of interest of Nationalist MP Charlo Bonnici. After three hours, the Speaker ruled against the Opposition. The Opposition disagreed, but stayed silent.
The Opposition, however, could not accept that parliamentary rules were ignored, despite clear precedent, which was why it walked out after the Speaker's decision on Parliamentary Secretary Mario Galea's vote.
What really hurt, Dr Muscat said, was the fact that MPs had witnessed a 'blatant lie' against Justyne Caruana. Dr Muscat said that Dr Caruana, who is in early pregnancy, had taken this issue very badly.
It was clear from the 'cleaned' tape recordings that Dr Caruana had voted for the opposition motion, Dr Muscat said. Therefore, until the government formally apologised in parliament to Dr Caruana, the Labour MPs would not attend the sittings of the Parliamentary Committee on Democratic Change, because what happened on Thursday-Friday night undermined democracy.
Dr Muscat said no pressure had been put on Labour MP Carmelo Abela to step down his post as Deputy Speaker, but he had acted wisely, because democracy had been betrayed.
A Prime Minister who always spoke about values should realise that honesty and truth came first. Just as important was credibility. After the political lies of Thursday-Friday night, how could anyone trust the government with anything?
Dr Muscat said that what happened during the vote would not be allowed to overshadow the 'corrupt' power station extension contract.
Earlier, Labour Deputy Leader Anglu Farrugia asked if Speaker Michael Frendo had been threatened last Thursday and by whom.
He said that Dr Frendo had had a duty to declare the result of the vote. There had been various instances in the past when MPs voted one way but then said they had made a mistake. However, Dr Farrugia said, it was always the first vote which counted.
Dr Farrugia insisted that Labour MP Justyne Caruana was 'framed' by Foreign Minister Tonio Borg when he claimed that she had voted against the Opposition motion.
In his speech Dr Muscat reiterated the Opposition's criticism of the power station contract, quoting various sections of the report by the Auditor-General.
He said that it was very serious that Infrastructure Minister Austin Gatt on Thursday had sought to put the Office of the Auditor-General in a bad light, by claming that evidence given in the inquiry, about bidder Bateman not having been informed about the results of the tender.
Dr Muscat said that through this contract, the government had violated its own electoral programme since it had promised investment for an environmentally cleaner power station. The government had opted for technology which it turned down in 1993. He said that such were the conditions of the contract, that the government would pay if completion of the works was delayed, and BWSC would get a bonus for early completion.
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J Brincat
May 10th 2010, 07:58
@Joe Micallef I do not seen the obscenity or obscenities that you mention. But then if you see things not as they are but with political thick blinkers then you start seeing things the way you want. If you are happy inhaling poisonous fumes from heavy fuel oil then I and many others are not. Perhaps you do not live, like me, in the south of Malta where we are have been gathering black dust from our roofs and balconies. These are what I call obsenities and wonder of wonders after ten years the Goverments has not yet found its source.
Joe Micallef
May 10th 2010, 21:08
You are so blinkered that you cannot even think before you write and may be consider that your interlocutor is in your same situation. I live in an area which has been the stark obscenity of Malta Labour Party on the count of environment! But I see basic reason is beyond you and this can be seen in your effort to string a sensible argument! If I may ask what was Joey doing in front of those containers the day before!
As I said elsewhere I am in favour of the plant being run on gasoil and I understand that for this to happen I can expect higher bills than the hefty ones I am already paying! And you?
malcolm azzopardi
May 10th 2010, 07:00
Still cannot understand why some people are still defending a toxic powerstaion which will kill people.
This is a national issue and not a political one!!
Joe Micallef (part 2)
May 9th 2010, 18:19
3. Then is was conflict of interest – Clutching at straws the childish leader of the opposition came up with the most far fetched of exceptions. Had this been upheld we would have ended up with a paralysed parliament.
4. Prepared to claim victory on a mistake and immorally live with it – Desperate as they were, they just had to register this victory at all cost by whatever means that would be achieved. On the voting mayhem, unless the PN MPs are unequivocally certain that the Labour MP did also make a mistake then they would be participating in this shameful behaviour.
5. Not content with the big debacle the ever increasingly puerile PL leader equated this issue with the reasons why Greece is bankrupt. Oh my goodness this is seriously astonishing, coming from a party that employed 8000 people on the eve of an election, was and is against privatisation of national fund suckers and was against EU membership is simply incredible
Conclusion – the faster the PL realises it needs a decent leader and even more urgently a strategist and also a communication guru, it is distancing itself from winning the next general election.
P. Schembri
May 9th 2010, 20:11
I loved the way you've drawn your conclusions. If what you say is true, how come the government, or for that matter BSWC don't want to publish the whole contract? It is being paid by our own money. We're the major stakeholders in this project. Talking about corruption, as if!!! I would like to hear of the man, or woman for that matter to admit to corruption, or to leave tell-tale signs of corruption. The Auditor General said he didn't find hard evidence. Of course he won't find signed cheques, won't find bank accounts (he hasn't got the power to do it) and he can interrogate because it's the police duty to do so. All the Auditor could say was that there were persons who were very uncooperative and suffered from acute dementia when asked certain questions. Corruption, as at the time of the PL, can be felt or perceived, but can never be proven. And history is repeating itself! As for the PL clutching at straws, wow that's a tall one! Ask your party who's doing what!
Joe Micallef (part 1)
May 9th 2010, 18:09
Labour played this obscenity on 5 moving targets
1. First it was corruption - This was a commercial competition between several bidders. The loosing bidder (which as confirmed by the Auditor could have never won the tender) knew it had no legal grounds to stop the contract and cleverly shifted their claims on the political field, casting the bait (after all they are called "Bait"man) quickly swallowed by the PL who saw it as an issue to fill their otherwise inexistent alternative offer. What defeats me is that the PL has not yet understood that for at least another 30 years it’s not credible on corruption claims. With over half of its MPs at least morally responsible for the most corrupt administration it is like asking the Jews to believe that Hitler loved them!
2. Then it was environment – When the Auditor shredded any strings they could attach to corruption, and when they realised that “shortcomings” cannot be equated to corruption the issue became one of environment. Again it baffles me how notwithstanding the shortcomings of this administration on environment issues the PL fails to understand that it has no credentials to fight its political battles on this platform!
Joseph E Briffa
May 9th 2010, 17:16
Why all this repetition of the same allegations? Do some people believe that by repeating allegations ad nauseam, all the people believe them? Is this strategy being adopted solely for political mileage? If the European Investment Bank finds out that there is any proof of corruption, they will cancel the loan.
Dominic Bezzina
May 9th 2010, 17:08
@ E Abela If what last week did not show you any sign's of shall we say moving the goal posts to suit the PN then maybe you are living on another planet .An innocent pregnant woman used as a pawn in the PN's game of chess .
Appalling behaviour they deserve no one's vote .Sorry Dr Gonzi you will never get my vote ..
D. Xerri
May 9th 2010, 17:00
@E.Abela
You are either naive which I doubt or a blue-eyed person who totally and completely blesses everything the GonziPN Govt does. Everyone knows that in these islands to prove something one has to go through certain channels - Now all these channels are controlled by the Govt so the answer is so simple to understand. When You have such a theatrical saga where even the contract itself was not even seen by the Prime Minister himself - were talking 200 Million Euros - and Yet we see our prime minister saying in front of all the maltese tax payers that he didnt even see the contract - Where else can You go ?
When the maltese people are no longer treated as idiots for once and when things are placed black on white in front of everyone to see THEN AND ONLY THEN we will Beleive the Government !
Lawrence Fenech
May 9th 2010, 16:57
Dawn in-nies din il-lobghba taghhom. Il-verita xi darba titla fil-wicc ku trid tkun int biex tikxifa inkella kollox jibqa mistur. Thumbs up.
Ray Abela
May 9th 2010, 16:54
dear leader of the opposition please note that the onloy corruption which was proven was perpetrated by the Labour Party in the 70s and 80s. These acts of corruption remain unpunished till today. But today there are the institutions to eradicate corruptuion from our midst. If you have proof not allegations you know where to take them. If not ... shut up. Malta does not need inciters.
Marcel Dingli
May 9th 2010, 17:26
EFA kien jghidilna biex ixewwixna li hawn il korruzzjoni istitutuzjonalizzata. Ahna l boloh emminih. X provi kien hemm fuq il gvernijiet laburisti ? Lil min ressaq il Qorti EFA ? Halli nghidlek. Fi zmien il Labour dejjem hadt dak li kien tieghi u qatt ma xahhamt centezmu. Illum l anqas id drittijiet ma niehu. Mhux pjaciri, drittijiet kien jghidilna is sur "stereo".
E. Abela
May 9th 2010, 15:47
I am sick and tired of hearing the leader of the Opposition going on and on about 'corruption'. I say only one thing - if you have proof of corrpution do ahead and prove it - then and only then will I believe you.
Charlie Micallef
May 9th 2010, 16:52
INTI BIS SERJETA ? SUR ABELA
Jew biex iddahhakna !!!!!!!!