Malta is a democratic republic, the Constitution says. A republic is in theory a State where citizens enjoy supreme power, which is exercised by representatives chosen directly or indirectly through citizens’ votes.
The system of “government of the people, by the people, for the people” was hailed by US president Abraham Lincolm in 1863, when he prayed such type of government “shall not perish from the earth”.
An essential component in a democracy is accountability. “A body of men holding themselves accountable to nobody ought not to be trusted by anybody,” English-American political activist, philosopher and political theorist Thomas Paine had warned.
Mahatma Gandhi was explicit on what he thought of those who shunned accountability: “It is wrong and immoral to seek to escape the consequences of one’s acts.”
Planning Parliamentary Secretary Michael Falzon evidently has other ideas.
He had the temerity – arrogance would be a better term given the barrage of criticism and allegations he faces – to defiantly declare: “I have no intention to pack up and leave because I sincerely believe we did a lot and can do more. I believe I have done nothing wrong.”
Had it been a case of giving a push to a distant relative seeking a job in the public sector, Dr Falzon might have been absolved had he made a public apology and ensure wrongs were righted. Elsewhere, political correctness would have forced him to step down but the resignation culture here is still on the electorate’s wishlist.
Of course, what Dr Falzon faces is far more serious than helping a jobless acquaintance.
His office has been in the news over a scandal on the part-expropriation of a Valletta building by the government. The matter is now being investigated by the National Audit Office. As parliamentary secretary, Dr Falzon rubber-stamped two expropriation agreements that saw Marco Gaffarena receive €1.6 million in cash and land.
It has also emerged that Dr Falzon had successfully negotiated an early retirement package, worth €260,000, with his former employer, Bank of Valletta, when he was offered a Cabinet post last year. The package included a provision, described as unique, giving him the possibility of returning to the bank until June 2018, subject to paying back pro-rata the lump sum.
Some quarters are asking whether Dr Falzon had a conflict of interest since he got the early retirement package from the same company with which, as parliamentary secretary, he discussed the extended use of the House of Four Winds, in Valletta, as the bank chairman’s office. Dr Falzon rejects these charges.
Dr Falzon is no fool – far from it. He must surely realise the implications of the information that has emerged so far on him and the political office he holds.
In a court of law one is judged according to the concrete evidence available. In the political arena, a politician is condemned or hailed according to voters’ perceptions. Regrettably, in this country most politicians – including the first among the equals – fail to make a clear distinction between criminal responsibility and political liability. Dr Falzon proved this when he told his interviewer on Labour’s radio that the Opposition was being destructive (in his regard) and engaging in character assassination because of the success he had achieved over the past 16 months in office.
Judging him by Winston Churchill’s words – “You can measure a man’s character by the choice he makes under pressure” – Dr Falzon has failed miserably.