President George Abela, who feels the Office of the President should have more constitutional powers, has made it clear that the Constitution as it stands bars him from intervening in the prevailing political situation.
“According to my constitutional functions, the President cannot interfere in whatever takes place outside Parliament,” he said yesterday.
Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando resigned from the Nationalist parliamentary group last week and is now an independent MP. As a result, the government – which had a one-seat majority – is now effectively in coalition with Dr Pullicino Orlando.
Asked if he felt he had missed a golden opportunity while he was in Peru doing voluntary work to contact the Prime Minister to establish whether he still commanded a parliamentary majority, Dr Abela did not feel this was the case.
“I think you’re wrong,” he said.
Dr Abela returned on Thursday from a 15-day trip to Arequipa, Peru, with 77 Maltese volunteers. While he was away, both Dr Pullicino Orlando and Nationalist MP Franco Debono said the President would be justified in asking Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi whether he still commanded a parliamentary majority, following Dr Pullicino Orlando’s resignation.
Dr Abela also stressed that Acting President Anton Tabone had been keeping him informed of national developments while he was away.
When asked if he had spoken to the Prime Minister from Peru following Dr Pullicino Orlando’s resignation, Dr Abela said: “We’ll leave it at that. I cannot interfere with whatever happens outside Parliament and nor can the Acting President.”
Dr Abela was also asked whether he had discussed the implications of Dr Pullicino Orlando’s resignation with the Prime Minister since he returned. “I spoke to him this morning at a funeral,” he said, before being ushered away.
Article 87 of the Constitution requires the Prime Minister to keep the President fully informed on “the general conduct of the government of Malta”.
According to constitutional lawyer Austin Bencini, events in the PN’s executive committee were partisan activities and, therefore, did not involve “the general conduct of the government”.
“Matters would have been different had the Prime Minister lost a formal vote of confidence in Parliament because, in that case, the Constitution empowers the President to act on his own initiative and, in all probability, to dissolve Parliament,” Dr Bencini said.
Away from the constitutional matters, Dr Abela was happier to talk about his trip to Peru. “It was very positive. We did some very good projects. It has been beneficial both to the Arequipans and us.”