The government of Joseph Muscat thinks that with the European Football Championship, the Panama issue will subside. Muscat is wrong if he really thinks so. The Panama issue is still there for everyone to see.  And now it has reached new heights.

Muscat has to bear in mind that every honest citizen in this island would lose if this scandal is not wiped out entirely.  There is little immediate prospect of moving forward together, as a united country, unless the Panama hurricane is not dealt with appropriately, that is with courage and determination.  This stand-off is doing nobody any good.

Aside from the question of whether it is morally acceptable for Muscat to continue to support Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri, the bigger-picture question that many seem to be missing is that corruption erodes the institutional capacity of government if procedures are totally disregarded.

Muscat was faced with a stark choice. He preferred the easy way out: to continue leading his government with his head buried in the sand, instead of embracing the truth in a much more meaningful way.

Muscat preferred the easy way out: to continue leading his government with his head buried in the sand

It is hard for Muscat to keep this state of affairs.  Ultimately, he may have to call early elections or resign. The backdrop in his support is quite clear this time round.  Unless he realises the consequences facing his government, by being so stubborn in refusing to call a spade a spade and force his two favourite colleagues out of office, he will have to face the music in two years’ time. This tragedy is going to haunt him.

In other democratic countries, this scandal would have sparked anti-government protests across the board because this is a political crisis of the first order. For once, Muscat must listen to what decent people like Edward Scicluna and Alfred Sant had to say with regard to this scandal and be honest with himself by admitting defeat and try to look towards a better future for the country.

May I remind that Muscat was swept to power in a magnificent way with a solemn pledge to end corruption, to restore vision, to renew focus in education, to slash wasteful government spending and boost private sector job creation.

And yet, the unthinkable followed. The Maltese citizen was betrayed by one scandal after another and the image of Malta hangs in the balance.

It is unclear what percentage of Labour supporters would be willing to show their support of Muscat and vote for him again in the next general election.

In two years’ time, citizens of this island will be called again to cast their vote, and these same citizens are going to argue that Muscat did not take the steps he needed to in this scandal, in order to restore tranquility and peace of mind to the man in the street.

No cabinet minister is indispensable. No chief of staff is above the law.

It is not too late for Muscat to recognise the problems building up because of his intransigence to take measures.

He must restore trust in himself and in the government he leads, if, of course, he would like to win a second term.

Jos Edmond Zarb is a pianist and an author.

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