When Josè Barroso, the European Commission president, pushed John Dalli into resigning from his position as commissioner, he was forced to admit that there was no conclusive evidence of direct

In fairness to the truth and Dalli, this intrigue should be unravelled as soon as possible

participation (by Dalli) either as instigator or mastermind of the operation requesting money in exchange for political services as expressed by Silvio Zammit.

In the absence of clear proof, then, why did Barroso push Dalli over the cliff?

Because, according to Giovanni Kessler of OLAF, there were “a number of unambiguous and converging circumstantial items of evidence gathered in the course of the investigation indicating that Commissioner John Dalli was actually aware of both the machinations of Silvio Zammit and the fact that the latter was using his name and position to gain financial advantages”.

So, although Barroso had no actual proof, he effectively sacked Dalli, thereby both disgracing him as well as pleasing those in the Nationalist Administration who feared that Dalli might return to politics in Malta and be a heck of a threat to then Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi.

As the months have rolled by, the circumstantial evidence mentioned by Kessler, who communicated it to the media in a performance more befitting a political clown than his sensitive position, has not in any way turned into conclusive evidence, much less as inescapable proof. Rather the opposite.

Reluctance to publish the OLAF report fed doubts that not every peg was in its proper hole. Worse was to follow, including revelations regarding Kessler’s unorthodox – to put it mildly – behaviour.

This included unauthorised wire tapping and interrogations and wining and dining a key person in the investigation after seven hours of interrogation and then having her sign a statement that she was not in a position to go through thoroughly and verify.

In time, it was Kessler himself, and not Dalli, who came under heavy fire by non-Maltese MEPs who expressed clear doubt about his competence and fitness to continue to occupy his position and calling for him quite unambiguously to go.

Kessler brazenly refused to do so and, as a last resort in face of the beating he was taking, called on the Maltese authorities to publish the OLAF report.

As it happened, things converged in yesterday’s press.

MaltaToday acquired a copy of the OLAF report and placed it online for all to see. The Sunday Times of Malta, on its part, acquired another report, possibly based on revelations by a whistleblower but including alleged facts, which were not denied, and which place Kessler and OLAF in a very weak light.

What happens now?

The police in Malta have started their own legal action, with the outgoing Police Commissioner apparently satisfied that they had a case against Dalli.

It remains to be seen what sort of case that is and whether it includes unmistakable proof.

The new Commissioner of Police is reviewing the situation.

In fairness to the truth and Dalli, this intrigue should be unravelled as soon as possible. Pressure in Brussels will or will not take its course with, at the very least, Kessler being tainted and rendered unsuitable for higher office.

In Malta that is not enough. The people should know whether there really was collusion between Brussels and elements of the previous Nationalist government, possibly to divert attention from the acute troubles it was already facing in Malta from within its own quarters.

They should also be told how the police came to their conclusions. The sooner the better.

Meanwhile, the political class and, especially, those in office should draw a lesson from all this.

Be very careful of the people you surround yourself with and trust. Make sure that they are as ethical as you want to be. Even if you do all that, you might still have to unfairly face unpleasantries.

So don’t take any chances. You owe it to yourself. And to the people who select you as their representative.