Opposition leader Simon Busuttil this afternoon listed reasons why the Prime Minister should resign in the wake of the alleged Egrant scandal, adding that the magisterial inquiry currently underway should analyse all aspects revealed in the Panama Papers.

Speaking at a press conference, Dr Busuttil referred to his meeting this morning with President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca and a statement issued by the Office of the President.

He said he had asked the President to intervene and exercise her moral authority for the Prime Minister to step down, even though she could not dismiss him.

Dr Busuttil said he could not reveal what the President told him at the meeting.

However he noted that in its statement, the Office of the President said that while the President's powers were limited, "she will exercise what powers she has."

Secondly, she declared that the law needs to be observed "by everyone."

Dr Busuttil said the PN's view was that the Prime Minister should go, as soon as possible, because his position was untenable.

“Every day he stays in office continues to harm Malta’s image.”

He recalled that when the Panama Papers scandal broke, the then-Prime Minister of Iceland had resigned. So too had an Industry Minister of  Spain and the Budget Minister in France.

None of those cases were as serious as in Malta. In Iceland, the Prime Minister’s wife was mentioned as having Panama companies. She was able to explain that the funds had come from inheritance, but the Prime Minister still stepped down.

“So why do obscenities happen in Malta and no one shoulders the responsibility?” Dr Busuttil said.

Money laundering, he pointed out, was a crime punishable by jail for up to 18 years.

He asked how anyone could not have questions about the current magisterial inquiry when the Prime Minister, whose duty it was to ensure that inquiries were handled well, was actually the one under investigation. This was a blatant conflict of interest and one reason for the Prime Minister to quit.

Questions about the inquiry were also raised when one saw how the inquiry was only called after evidence was removed from Pilatus Bank.

“What we saw last week was shocking.  The bank should have been sealed immediately, but nothing happened before the bank’s owner was allowed to leave, carrying two bags.”

And it was absolutely unbelievable how the Minister for Home Affairs, Carmelo Abela, had himself admitted political interference in the police, when he told Times of Malta  that: “The commissioner acted immediately as soon as the Prime Minister called him to call a magistrate and start an inquiry.”

“The position of the Prime Minister is untenable, He should leave if he really wants to see justice. Justice had to be done and seen to be done and in this case, justice is not being seen to be done,” Dr Busuttil said.  

He said that the magisterial inquiry, although called late and after the removal of evidence, should not be narrow in its scope but investigate all revelations made in the Panama Papers or elsewhere.

For example, did the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, Keith Schembri have an account in Pilatus Bank? Was it true that members of the ruling family in Azerbaijan also had accounts in the bank?

Would the inquiry establish what had happened to the two reports prepared by the FIAU after the Panama Papers scandal broke?

When he replied to reporters’ questions, Dr Busuttil said he was of the view that blogger Daphne Caruana Galizia should appear before the inquiring magistrate if called.

He was asked whether Parliament should be recalled from its Easter recess for a vote of confidence in the prime minister. He said "the number of MPs are what they are".

LABOUR: NO EVIDENCE BECAUSE THERE IS NONE

In a reaction, the Labour Party said Dr Busuttil had not produced any evidence to back his claims, because there was none. 

It said Dr Busuttil's bubble was burst when, on Saturday, Brian Tonna, head of Nexia BT, published documents showing that he owned Egrant and no one else.  

What had been published so far was a transcript of a supposed document which contained so many serious mistakes, that it was evidently fake, the PL said.  

It would be better for Dr Busuttil to stick to facts, such as the surplus in government finances and the conversion of the power station to gas, the PL said.  

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