The Prime Minister has admitted the Panama Papers issue has not been his best political experience since being elected in 2013. At best, this is an understatement about the consequence of this saga not just for the government but for Malta’s reputation as an EU member and a respectable financial services centre.
Recent events have made it even more essential for the government to update the public on the investigations into the behaviour in financial matters of Cabinet Minister Konrad Mizzi and the Prime Minister’s closest aide, Keith Schembri.
This is not a question of lurid curiosity on the part of the media and the public but one where Malta’s reputation with investors and international institutions needs to be strengthened through evidence of good political governance by an EU member state that will be holding the rotating presidency in a few months’ time.
The Prime Minister must have made his political calculations when he decided not to act as decisively as many expected when faced with the facts revealed in the Panama Papers. The best case scenario for the government would have been that the issue would soon blow away as the media and the public grow tired of hearing about allegations of corruption by politicians.
When the Panama Papers issue erupted both locally and internationally the government engaged in a damage limitation exercise by arguing that the politically exposed persons involved in this case had not committed any illegal act and were just following the advice of their financial consultants. As pressure by the media grew, Finance Minister Edward Scicluna confirmed in Parliament that the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit was investigating the outcome of the Panama Papers leaks.
The recent resignations of the police commissioner and the director of the FIAU have again focused media attention on the Panama issue. Politico.eu, a Brussels-based political website, cast doubt on Malta’s ability to push through EU anti-graft laws while it holds the 2017 presidency. Transparency International tweeted that “Malta needs to clean up its corruption mess before it heads the Council of the EU next year”. A German Green MEP described the handling of the Panama issue in Malta as a “whole mess”.
For the Finance Minister, Panama Papers concerns expressed by MEPs are “overblown” As a seasoned academic and economist he is arguably the most qualified minister in the present Cabinet to understand the fragility of trust in a country’s reputation as a respectable financial services centre when high-ranking political exposed persons are allegedly involved in unacceptable financial practices. It, therefore, surprised many people when Prof. Scicluna declared that he is not privy to the FIAU probe on Panama Papers. The fact that FIAU is autonomous of government does not mean it is not accountable for what it does or does not do. It also does not mean it is free from possible political undue pressure.
This is why the government should update the public about where the investigations on the Panama Papers are at the moment. Only in this way can one believe there is indeed the political will to look into allegations of corruption within the highest levels of government to safeguard Malta’s reputation.
Politicians should not only avoid criminal behaviour. They need to do what is right for their country. Their party and colleagues should come much later.