The year has ended on an anticlimactic note for anyone who expected a major development in the political controversy involving Nationalist MP Franco Debono, as the Prime Minister continues to decline comment.
The ball is in the Prime Minister’s court
Lawrence Gonzi has not yet divided the justice and home affairs portfolios as he allegedly promised the backbencher he would by the end of the year. However, Dr Debono has neither withdrawn nor reiterated his promise to stop supporting the government in Parliament if the promise is broken.
“My declaration should have been interpreted and understood in a reasonable manner from the outset,” Dr Debono said yesterday.
When he made his threat on December 21, Dr Debono made no such caveats: “I have told the Prime Minister I will not support the government, and he can go ahead and call an election, unless he splits up the ministry by the end of the year, as he had told me and publicly declared he would.”
Though seemingly less infuriated now, Dr Debono insists he is not wavering on his initial threat but simply being practical.
In effect, he can only express the withdrawal of government support during a vote in Parliament. But the House is currently shut and will only be reconvened after the Christmas recess on January 18. Until a vote is scheduled, the ball is in the Prime Minister’s court.
And since Dr Gonzi may exercise his prerogative to split the portfolios at any time before that date, Dr Debono is not in a position to withdraw his support.
Meanwhile, a series of questions to the Office of the Prime Minister have remained unanswered. The Times asked whether any decision had been taken, pointing out that the current stalemate was creating uncertainty. However, Dr Gonzi’s spokesman simply referred to a declaration the Prime Minister made on December 1 where he said he was considering Dr Debono’s suggestion to divide the portfolios of justice and home affairs.
“His reasoning is valid and one must give the suggestion consideration and be open to discussing which direction we should take,” Dr Gonzi had said.
Speaking on TVM yesterday, Dr Debono said he was always loyal to the party but stressed on the need for reform, particularly in the justice sector.
The splitting of portfolios was just the beginning of a series of reforms that would follow.
“I have been calling for this since 2008 because it is unacceptable that a magistrate heads police inquiries and then judges cases where the same police prosecute,” he said.
Dr Debono also criticised inadequate libel laws. “While respecting freedom of expression one must also respect the right to reputation. Reputation and the dignity of the person are considered as extensions of the physical person and society must attribute a respectable value to that by ensuring adequate libel laws.”
The backbencher also asked whether the his party could afford to go to an election without enacting the party financing law, which has been promised for years and which he had drafted.
Asked about the matter yesterday, a spokesman for the OPM said this was an important item in the government’s programme and that Dr Debono’s draft Bill was being “fine tuned by experts”.
“The government intends to publish the draft Bill for public consultation after referral to the Parliamentary Group.”