Lawrence Gonzi’s apology not accepted

Can anyone imagine the courts setting free a rapist who expresses contrition for his crime? Or a fraudster for saying sorry to his victim?

I do not accept Lawrence Gonzi’s so-called apology for the honoraria saga. He is sorry not for having plundered the tax money we pay so that he and his ministers would be more comfortable – Dr Gonzi is sorry because the way the whole matter was handled by the government harmed the Nationalist Party electorally.

How can we accept the apology as sincere, when in Parliament Dr Gonzi not only did not express any contrition when the honoraria increase was debated, but shrilled out “We did not do any wrong, we did not do any wrong”? In Parliament he defended the increase, now he is apologising – what is he, a confused spinning top?

The apology he offered is mere words so long as he retains the earnings increase he unconscionably introduced for himself and his ministers.

Do people realise that the highly generous increase the ministers awarded themselves was introduced when the huge increase to the energy and water tariffs had not yet been brought in? Were the ministers already aware of the coming tariffs rise when the earnings increase was made, or would that income increase have been larger had they been aware of the impending higher tariffs?

The honoraria increase is not only insensitive, as the Labour Party termed it, but greedy.

Dr Gonzi’s apology is as convincing to me as the empty bluster against the honoraria mouthed so volubly by MPs Jean Pierre Farrugia, Jesmond Mugliett and Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando, among others. When it came to the crunch, these men of straw voted with their party, for fear of losing their influential and powerful seat in parliament.