I was flipping through the family album on a recent Sunday evening and came across some photos which sent shivers down my spine.  The recent cold spell in Malta had nothing to do with the physical reaction as I gazed down at photos of my family and I celebrating in Valletta with EU flags after the victory of the 2003 referendum to join the European Union.

Most of you will surely remember the highly charged and emotional backdrop to that rally in the city.  It had been a long and difficult journey for many people, hindered many a time by a Labour Party dead set on application freezes and scaremongering.  The persistence and hard work of many a protagonist had finally paid off as Malta finally voted in favour of joining.

It had been a hard fought, nail-biting campaign led by astute politicians who strongly believed that our country’s place was firmly within the union.  Eddie Fenech Adami successfully led the pro-EU movement in the referendum campaign and then won the successive general election.

The image of him signing Malta’s EU Accession Treaty with Joe Borg must surely be one of the most memorable historical moments for this country.  But if there ever was a face and a name that was completely synonymous with the negotiations for Malta to access the EU it definitely was Simon Busuttil.

The Maltese are no strangers to conflict and we will fight this corruption with or without the European Commission’s co-operation

Busuttil was not only a pivotal member of the then negotiating group but became a household name in the run up to the referendum with his convincing arguments pro-membership.  His untiring effortscatapulted this country into a new era of European politics and set him on a unique personal platform which resulted in a highly impressive victory at the polls for a seat in the European Parliament.

Busuttil was convinced that what he was championing was the right thing and this conviction sustained him throughout this difficult time.  His belief in his calling helped him persuade thousands of Maltese and Gozitan voters in a powerful referendum which attracted the Yes vote even from Labour supporters who placed their confidence in Busuttil’s words for the good of the nation.

I recalled all this on the day of the official opening of the EU presidency in Malta a few days ago.  Away from the irony of a Labour government lavishly hosting this presidency, what struck most of us most was Busuttil’s short speech in the Maltese Parliament addressed to the European Commission.

In an unexpected turn, Malta’s most fervent Europhile was using precious allotted time intended to welcome the European commissioners to his homeland, to criticise them for failing the Maltese people fighting a war on corruption.

In a painfully honest statement, Busuttil declared his disappointment and expressed the anger of the Maltese people at the EU for failing to take action in the case of a Maltese minister embroiled in the Panama Papers affair.  He wasted no time in voicing on behalf of the nation that what we Maltese voted for and expected from the European Union was sadly not forthcoming.

He relayed to them the outrage of the Maltese people that the EU has kept silent in the face of serious allegations of corruption and involvement in an international scandal.  For after all, were not the values of honesty and solidarity which originally attracted the Maltese to Europe?

Busuttil was being brutally honest and the European commissioners and Maltese government cabinet members looked visibly uncomfortable.

For the truth perturbs even the most seasoned of politicians.  Malta as an EU member state in 2017 is fighting institutionalised corruption and its trusty watchdog is offering little if any support.

The EU Commission by now must be fully aware that just one day following the swearing-in ceremony of a Cabinet minister, this same minister together with the Prime Minister’s chief of staff (and another yet unknown personality) made sure to open secret companies in Panama and bank accounts requiring a deposit of no less than one million euros each year.

For the sake of clarity, let’s break this down a bit.  Just 24 hours after taking up public office, these gentlemen’s priority was to ensure that they had the right financial structure wherein huge deposits could be made with no questions asked or audits requested.

Is it any wonder that the Prime Minister has lost credibility?  For how can you trust politicians and public appointees who so blatantly are pursuing their personal agenda rather than the public one?

Who can convince the Maltese electorate that all these unpublished contracts referring to sales and purchases dealing with millions of euros were not in fact lined up one after the other intended to line the pockets of a very few?  This is dishonour at its best and downright robbery at its worst.

This is not what we voted for when we decided to join the European Union.  A local issue it is not, and if the commission persists in turning a blind eye to this sleaze and corruption, then its values have also rusted to the core.

The Maltese are no strangers to conflict and we will fight this corruption with or without the European Commission’s co-operation.  The Nationalist Party invites all Maltese patriots to join it in a coalition of nationalism to beat corruption and return this country to a proper political practice where politics serves the people and not the other way around.

Caroline Galea is a National Party general election candidate on the fourth district.