This country never ceases to amaze me. Here we are faced with a situation that is potentially highly embarrassing to the highest office in the land, and the vessels that normally make the most sound are as quiet as a Tibetan monastery.

This is not some band club kaxxier we’re talking about. It’s the holder of the highest office in the country

I refer, of course, to the allegation that the President had directly influenced the board of the Community Chest Fund (CCF) to fork out his daughter-in-law’s sister’s study-related expenses. I sort of expected the sky to be dark with wide-eyed journalists and press releases.

Au contraire, heaven bless our forgiving souls, the sky is as clear and as blue as ever. The press has been relatively docile and accommodating. The political parties are nowhere to be seen (it wouldn’t do to mess with the holy of holies now, would it?). As for the President’s Office itself, it has ‘nothing more to add’ to the flimsiest of statements issued on Tuesday.

There are three quite separate matters here. The first concerns the wisdom or otherwise of using CCF money to fund study-related expenses. The argument is that that money would have been better spent helping the hapless people we see paraded on our screens at L-Istrina. In other words, that flight tickets and airport vouchers are not strictly kif tista’ ma ccempilx and persuni anqas ixxurtjati territory. I’m not so sure. True, one could argue till kingdom come about which expenses are reasonable and which less so. In any case, it’s a spectre that haunts all charities, and CCF is no exception. It doesn’t help that the information we have is scant and disjointed.

Let us therefore assume that the CCF was justified in its decision. The rationale behind the assumption is that eating disorders are a serious matter that well deserves CCF money, and that any charitable initiative entails side costs.

The second problem is that Darleen Zerafa’s sister is married to Robert Abela, the President’s son. Surely that’s too close for comfort?

It certainly is. Then again, we might want to assume it’s all a coincidence, that it just so happens that the sister of the best-qualified person once fell in love with Robert Abela. Darleen Zerafa would still be the best qualified person. For the purposes of this piece, I’m happy to assume she is.

No matter. All the benefits of the doubt, assumptions and goodwill in the world still leave the President (not Darleen Zerafa) with one colossal problem. To my mind, and I say this with respect to the Office, his behaviour at the CCF meeting was completely unacceptable.

In what follows, I assume that the meeting minutes leaked to the press are the genuine article.

Since they haven’t so far been disowned by the Community Chest Fund or the Office of the President, I believe my assumption is reasonable. If things turn out otherwise, I should be happy to eat my words.

I am a member of the board of the Faculty of Arts at University. Inevitably, it sometimes happens that matters come up that concern people (students, usually) who are related to some or other member of the board. It is standard practice that that member leave the room, no breath wasted. This for three reasons.

The obvious one is conflict of interest: it wouldn’t do for someone to discuss, and potentially influence, a decision that concerned a relative of theirs. Second, its thickness being what it is, blood is an excellent conductor of stuff, such as information. The Faculty of Arts is not exactly MI6. But we do, at times, discuss things as a board that are sensitive and properly kept confidential.

The third reason has to do with the member of the board themself. Any half-decent person would be embarrassed no end at having to sit through a discussion that concerned a family member. To leave the room is to spare oneself that embarrassment.

The relevant point here is that there is nothing especially saintly about the faculty board. It’s a standard procedure that should be followed in any board, committee, or somesuch. With the exception of the CCF, it seems.

I quote from the minutes as leaked: “H.E. the President asked Ms Zerafa to withdraw from the meeting and then drew the attention of the members of the board to the fact that she was undertaking at her own cost a course in Italy leading to a Masters degree in eating disorders... He felt that the Malta Community Chest Fund should consider reimbursing her with at least some if not all of her expenses.”

“Most board members agreed that it was unreasonable to expect Darleen to put herself through this trouble and that the board should consider reimbursing her all her costs.”

“H.E. said that if he read the mood of the meeting correctly it was their view that all Darleen’s expenses should be reimbursed by the board. This was agreed unanimously... The President explained to Miss Zerafa the board’s decision and she on her part exclaimed that she was surprised and thankful to the board.”

I can well understand her surprise. If this isn’t jaw-dropping, I don’t know what is. Not only did His Excellency not leave the meeting, he actually made a case that concerned a close relative of his. Not quite content, he then proceeded to ‘read the mood of the meeting’ – as if the mood of the meeting had nothing to do with his presence in the room. Only in Peru, shall we say.

‘Nothing more to add’? Yeah right. Quite a lot more to add rather, and as soon as possible. Not because I say so but because of two things.

First, this is not some band club kaxxier we’re talking about. It’s the holder of the highest office in the country, the person whose job it is to set the highest standards of behaviour and procedure. The palace life, the manicured lawns, the protocol and the rest are symbols of that task. It’s a responsibility I, like most, think highly of. We also expect some sort of returns.

Second, the consequences of silence are potentially disastrous to the image of the CCF. I’ve lost count of the number of people who told me, these last three days, that they will never again donate a cent to the charity.

I don’t think that’s a good idea. But I can understand their anger and I wish the President would do something to address it. It’s not just his personal credibility we’re talking about here, it’s also that of a charity that has helped countless people deal with their difficulties.

This is a serious case. To ignore it is tacitly to accept that we, as a people, are and will always be fundamentally flawed.

mafalzon@hotmail.com