Franco Debono went against his parliamentary group and voted to remove a minister but the Nationalist MP yesterday said political turmoil was “a closed chapter”.
If my ideas and calls for reforms were invalid and capricious then let’s discard them
It is the first such declaration from the MP after supporting the government in a vote of confidence last week, days after voting with the opposition to unseat Home Affairs Minister Carm Mifsud Bonnici.
But as the backbencher turned the page on his parliamentary actions, he said: “It is now time to focus on the reforms in the national interest.”
The reforms are those Dr Debono has been pushing for the past three years: changes in the law courts, the prison and the police corps, a more autonomous parliament, the introduction of a law regulating political party financing and changes to press laws.
They were listed in a 22-point private member’s motion submitted by Dr Debono last year. The government never put the motion on Parliament’s agenda and senior PN politicians like Francis Zammit Dimech have gone on record saying this was a mistake.
“If my ideas and calls for reforms were invalid and capricious then let’s discard them but if we are convinced this country needs reforms... then my calls have been valid, essential and urgent, and let’s implement them,” Dr Debono insisted yesterday.
For now, this seems to be the government’s chosen road. Justice Minister Chris Said was reported as saying the government would put on Parliament’s agenda Dr Debono’s Private Member’s Bill on party financing rather than present its own.
While some would interpret government’s actions as appeasement to secure its fragile one-seat majority, Dr Debono insisted persuasion not appeasement was the way forward.
“Appeasement is a result of lack of strategy. Convenience leads to appeasement while conviction leads to persuasion,” he said, adding that persuasion worked“both ways”.
Nationalist MP Edwin Vassallo insisted the case was closed for government. “That is how it should be but we should allow destiny to take its course.”
Mr Vassallo hit out at the opposition for pursuing “the lowest form of politics” by proposing yet another no confidence vote in Malta’s EU permanent representative Richard Cachia Caruana.
“I trust Dr Debono more than I trust the opposition,” he insisted.
His sentiments were shared by veteran Nationalist MP Ċensu Galea, who described Dr Mifsud Bonnici’s removal as “an ugly precedent”.
“It is a dangerous situation because if a single Member of Parliament decides to pick on a minister, the opposition pounces on it and forward a no-confidence vote. It was pathetic seeing one speaker after another from the opposition benches excusing themselves before going on a tirade against Carm (Mifsud Bonnici).”
When asked whether the chapter of political turmoil was over, Mr Galea did not flinch. “Only God knows what will happen next.”
For Labour Whip Joe Mizzi the situation is anything but resolved. The problems would persist because they were of Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi’s making, he said.
“Franco Debono is not the problem. It is the Prime Minister’s attitude that has been creating problems with various backbenchers.”
The tenuous situation was highlighted by Alternattiva Demokratika chairman Michael Briguglio who called for “clear decisions” to be taken. “If uncertainty prevails, an election should be called.”
It was pathetic seeing one speaker after another excusing themselves before going on a tirade against Carm Mifsud Bonnici
Dr Briguglio described Dr Debono’s actions as “prima donna” posturing and criticised the Labour Party for being “opportunistic”. Such moves, he said, were “uncalled for in the context of a global economic, social and environmental crisis”.
However, he urged the government to get on with the reforms, most of which were promised by the PN before the 2008 election.