Gozo Minister Anton Refalo seems to have a problem with explanations. When we asked him last month how he manages to pay the €830,000 loan listed in his ministerial declaration of assets with a joint annual income of €45,000, he refused to answer our questions. When we asked him why a Gozo Channel ferry returned to Ċirkewwa to pick up him and others last Sunday, he embarked on a tirade against everyone… except himself.
When contacted by Times of Malta on Sunday night to explain his role in the Gozo Channel incident, Dr Refalo admitting making a phone call, saying it was his duty to do so because passengers (who included himself and his family) were waiting.
He omitted to remark on the fact that the ferry company was running a shuttle service. He also omitted to say precisely who he called. He did say, however, that he (the word is italicised because it deserves emphasis since it harks back to a political style adopted by Lorry Sant) would be suspending the company’s duty manager.
The following day, Gozo Channel – which, in a gross error by this government, forms part of the Gozo Minister’s portfolio – leapt to his defence with a statement: “The duty manager received a call from a passenger, who identified himself as the Gozo Minister, complaining the ferry left passengers stranded. At no point did the passenger order, or in any way ask, for the ferry to go back and pick (up) him or other passengers from Ċirkewwa.”
We have already commented that “stranded” is being used in this context as a dramatic euphemism for waiting at the quayside for a few more minutes.
But what we did not know a few days ago – which we do know now – is that the minister did not call the duty manager; he called a canvasser, who is employed with Gozo Channel, who in turn made a phone call to the duty manager; who, without any pressure whatsoever, ordered the ferry to return.
Why was the minister reluctant, in his elaborate statement to Parliament, to specify who he spoke to? Why, when contacted, did his spokesman skirt the question – surely Dr Refalo must know who he communicated with? And how could Gozo Channel, a company that is supposed to have an independent management structure, issue a statement which contains such a glaring inaccuracy?
We are informed that in the midst of a furore on Sunday night, the duty manager did send a written communication saying he received a call from a passenger (unidentified). But he quickly corrected it.
The minister has since suspended the duty manager and filed libel suits against the media, including Times of Malta, which reported the incident. He may bully the duty manager, who is unfortunate enough to work for a company being run in this unacceptable manner; but he will not bully us. Nor will he stop us trying to get to the bottom of this sorry affair.
There is an operational reason why the ferry left without any passengers after unloading cars at Ċirkewwa: it was leaving the job to other vessels that were on the way so that it could return quickly and berth for the night – to save on overtime and to save the hassle of docking for the sake of a few cars, then backing out and docking again.
Gozo Channel’s new management may try and persuade us that this is not normal practice. But those who are familiar with the company know very different. However, this has become irrelevant. Even if the operational practice was incorrect, it could have been changed in the days that followed.
What cannot be changed is the truth. And we have not had that in its entirety. The minister has not only presided over this mess, he has been the central figure in it. If there is any accountability left in the Labour Government, he should resign, or be dismissed, with immediate effect.