Simon Busuttil was devastating in his criticism of the Budget on Monday. It was not his analysis of the Budget that made an impact, but his account of the ever-growing political impropriety in government.
It is this that is causing concern. It is also raising doubts about the Prime Minister’s willingness and ability to check abuse within his own administration.
People must have been shocked to learn of the amounts some backbenchers on the government’s side are earning besides the honorarium they are getting for attending Parliament. There are backbenchers who have two, three or even more jobs acting as consultants, chairmen or members of government boards.
The government was sharply criticised when it chose to reward backbenchers with political appointments. People are expected to contest elections to represent the people in Parliament, not to get lucrative jobs in government. It is one big shame that the government stooped to this tactic, a political ploy meant to keep them firmly in harness.
But this is only one aspect of the political impropriety that is rearing its head with galloping speed. What is one to make of the string of cases in which ministers or Members of Parliament appear to have thrown caution to the wind?
Before the 2013 general election, Joseph Muscat had promised meritocracy and a clean, transparent and accountable administration. He promised more, but these factors were supposed to make up the bedrock of his administration.
Evidence shows that Labour is already failing in each of its undertakings. Unaccountability is a most serious failure, but worse perhaps are the cases of political impropriety.
Take, for instance, the case of Luciano Busuttil, who is being accused of advising a local council to reject a company’s offer for a tender for the collection of domestic waste in order to favour one of his clients. The MP is denying the charge, but a court has ordered an investigation into the “serious allegations” of conflict of interest. This newspaper has confirmed that Busuttil was still actively representing his client in court at the same time he was advising the council.
Equally serious is the case of Equal Opportunities Minister Helena Dalli. The story here is that illegal works were being carried out in a property owned by one of her companies.
Defending her, the Prime Minister said the works were not being carried out by the minister but by the people who had signed a promise of sale agreement on the property; however, the fact remains that the property is still owned by the minister’s company and it is quite incredible that she said she was not aware that works were being carried out there.
The latest, and most serious, case involves Home Affairs Minister Manuel Mallia, whose security driver fired shots at another car which had hit the mirror of the minister’s car. Not only did this replicate the scene from a Hollywood action film but it was also followed by different versions as to what had actually taken place – destroying confidence in everybody associated with the case.
These and issues of lack of transparency and accountability have already tainted the government’s record. The question is: will there now be an attempt to correct the course it has taken? If recent evidence is anything to go by, the answer is a resounding ‘No’.