Joseph Mizzi is back as chairman of the Public Broadcasting Services, exactly three months after he resigned over a video portraying him as being in a state of total drunkenness at a Eurovision after-party in Germany.
Education Minister Dolores Cristina had accepted his resignation on May 23, but 24 hours after the Press Ethics Commission labelled him a victim of “character assassination” he was reinstated.
“This came as a bit of a surprise to me. A pleasant surprise ... because it is a show of confidence,” Mr Mizzi said.
He said he had resigned to clear his name, and the PEC’s ruling was the closest he could get to being cleared.
The commission pointed out that Mr Mizzi said he had a stomach bug and that he did not drink excessively that night, claims that were backed up by witnesses. It heavily censured the editor of Illum newspaper, Julia Farrugia, for making the unverified claim that Mr Mizzi was drunk.
“Just like I cannot prove that I was not drunk, the article could not prove that my state was induced by alcohol,” Mr Mizzi said.
He acknowledged that the number of people who vouched for him and supported him after his resignation could have influenced the “decision makers” to reinstate him.
“I’m glad that one’s integrity still holds water,” he said.
His reinstatement was announced by the Office of the Prime Minister in a statement that made no reference to the circumstances of his resignation or the reasons for his reinstatement.
When contacted, a spokesman for Mrs Cristina said he was reinstated due to the “good work” he had been doing at PBS as vouched for by many PBS employees who wrote to the minister after his resignation. “The decision was taken in the light of the observations made by the Press Ethics Commission,” the spokesman added.
In the morning, Mr Mizzi quoted lyrics from Queen’s song We Are the Champions on his Facebook page: “I’ve paid my dues time after time, I’ve done my sentence but committed no crime. And bad mistakes I’ve made a few, I’ve had my share of sand kicked in my face but I’ve come through.”
When contacted, he spoke about how the incident had badly affected his family. “Can you imagine having a 16-year old son whose father has been dubbed a drunkard? Can you imagine trying to explain the story to an 82-year-old father? Can you imagine the humility and embarrassment my wife had to go through because of all this? Why should someone stoop so low for a sensational story?”
Mr Mizzi has also filed a criminal complaint asking Police Commissioner John Rizzo to investigate whether his drinks had been spiked. Investigations are still ongoing.