The executive council of the Chamber of Small and Medium Enterprises – GRTU has declared it will not be intimidated by aggressive and violent people in its quest to safeguard its members.
It said this when expressing unanimous support to its president and vice president who have been arraigned and charged with perjury and subordinating witnesses. Both have pleaded not guilty and are refusing to step down.
The rule of law demands that any person charged in court is presumed innocent unless proven otherwise. Still,people occupying certain positions should know that when allegations are made about them it would be best to be in a position to fight one’s battle to clear one’s name without in any way affecting the reputation of the organisation one forms part of. That is why Paul Abelaand Philip Fenech should have resigned from their post of president and vice president respectively.
As things stand now, if they had to be convicted they risk bringing the GRTU into disrepute too. On the contrary, had they stepped down and are then acquitted, they would have been in a position to return triumphantly with their heads up high.
Their chosen course of action, fully backed by the executive council, needs to be evaluated and interpreted within the context of what led to their arraignment.
It ought to be pointed out that Abela and Fenech were taken to court following a specific order of a magistrate – since promoted to judge – in a judgment delivered two years ago.
The magistrate had found Sandro Chetcuti guilty of slightly injuring former GRTU director general Vincent Farrugia when he punched him in the face at the organisation’s Valletta offices, which is, of course, deplorable action.
Throughout the judgment, the magistrate made it abundantly obviousthat she did not believe all the witnesses that appeared before her and that there had been an attempt to make the incident appear far more serious than it actually was.
In her conclusions, the magistrate noted: “Finally, in view of the evidence produced in these proceedings, the court orders the Police Commissioner to investigate whether, in this case, there were the legal extremities amounting to the offences contemplated in articles 102, 104 and 110 of Chapter 9 of the Laws of Malta with regard to the injured party Vincent Farrugia or other people who testified in this case.”
The three mentioned articles in the Criminal Code speak of subordination of witnesses, making a false report or interpretation, giving false evidence in any criminal proceedings or fraudulently causing:
“Any fact or circumstance to exist, or to appear to exist, in order that such fact or circumstance may afterwards be proved in evidence against another person, with intent to procure such otherperson to be unjustly charged with, or convicted of, any offence.”
That the presiding magistrate felt she had to issue such an order to the Police Commissioner is very telling, especially in view of the very serious charges that had originally been brought against Chetcuti, including the attempted murder of Farrugia, a person aged over 60.
Abela and Fenech had every right to plead not guilty to perjury charges and, it must be repeated, they must be presumed innocent unless proven otherwise.
Likewise, the GRTU executive council was free to decide to express solidarity and not demand their resignation. Whether all members and law-abiding citizens agree and what sort of damage that may have caused to the GRTU is another matter altogether.