A statement about honoraria by the Prime Minister in Parliament on Tuesday contradicted remarks he had made in March last year, PN secretary general Chris Said charged yesterday.
Days after being sworn in as Prime Minister, Joseph Muscat said members of the outgoing Nationalist Cabinet had refunded the controversial weekly €500 increase in line with a pledge made by his predecessor, Lawrence Gonzi.
The Prime Minister lied because the parliamentary assistants cost €86,000 and not €2 million
“I was told by the principal permanent secretary that no money was due,” Dr Muscat had said when interviewed on PBS current affairs programme Dissett.
However, two days ago, Dr Muscat accused the PN administration of not keeping its word on the matter. When speaking about the Budget, he told Parliament that just €300,000 had been refunded from a bill of €1.6 million.
He also noted that the appointment of eight parliamentary assistants midway through the last legislature had cost taxpayers an additional €2 million.
Asked for his reaction, Dr Said pointed out that the Prime Minister’s most recent claim was “incorrect” while referring to a government statement issued on January 6, 2012, in which it was pledged that each Cabinet member would refund the salary increase that had been received by then.
He said Dr Muscat referred to the decision taken by the PN administration to have eight parliamentary assistants in an attempt to justify his decision to place several government MPs on the State payroll by appointing them at the helm of various public entities.
“The Prime Minister lied because the parliamentary assistants cost €86,000 and not €2 million, as Dr Muscat claimed,” Dr Said insisted.
The government last night clarified that the Prime Minister’s remarks last Tuesday were based on information he had given to Labour MP Chris Agius in a PQ in May last year. It said PN MPs Chris Said, Jason Azzopardi, Tonio Fenech, Giovanna Debono, Clyde Puli, Mario Galea, Mario de Marco and George Pullicino were still to refund part of the increase.
‘Honest politics’ at heart of PN general council
The PN will be calling for measures to strengthen independent institutions such as the police force, the Ombudsman and the Commission for the Administration of Justice at its forthcoming general council themed ‘Honest politics’.
The council’s conclusions would be followed up by various PN policy fora that would be asked to make concrete proposals, according to party secretary general Chris Said.
He expressed concern that the government was undermining the independence of the institutions mentioned and was trying to interfere.
Dr Said added the council’s theme was highly relevant to the current climate, stating that various Cabinet members “were not shouldering their responsibility”.
The council starts meeting tomorrow evening with the presentation of a policy document. It will be concluded on Sunday by Opposition leader Simon Busuttil.