Prime Minister Joseph Muscat took longer than two months to decide what to do about Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri after it was revealed they held companies in Panama. Ivan Camilleri looks back at Dr Muscat’s shifting public declarations since the scandal broke, culminating in last Thursday’s Cabinet reshuffle.

Since February 22, when the Panama Papers’ revelations about his close colleagues Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri first hit the headlines, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has more than once had a change of heart about how to tackle the crisis that engulfed his government.

Shifting stands: How the Times of Malta reported Dr Muscat’s positions over the weeks.

At first, he defended his lieutenants wholeheartedly, particularly Dr Mizzi, the former energy and health minister, now minister without portfolio within the OPM, who at the time was sole contender for the post of Labour deputy leader.

When it became public knowledge that the minister had opened a trust in New Zealand and a company in Panama, Dr Muscat repeatedly declared he had no problem with the overseas set-up. He justified it as a special case arising from Dr Mizzi’s “international family situation”, with a Chinese wife and a property in London.

“I see absolutely no problem with this set-up as [Mizzi] has declared all these interests in the draft declaration of assets he presented,” Dr Muscat said on February 24.

“I would have had a problem had he not declared them,” Dr Muscat insisted when quizzed.

For a week, Dr Muscat maintained this rigid stance, defending his effective second-in-command and the only minister who shares his offices at the Auberge de Castille.

In putting up his staunch defence, Dr Muscat blamed “hate blogs” and accused the PN of spinning the story to coincide with the election of Labour’s deputy leader.

His line of defence started to change, however, when the pressure began to grow and Dr Mizzi secured his post as Labour’s number two.

Dr Mizzi, he admitted, had made an “error of judgement” and “a politically naïve” decision.

Then, Dr Mizzi announced he was subjecting himself to a tax audit. Dr Muscat immediately expressed his approval and announced his chief of staff would follow suit.

This did not quell the criticism though and internal rumblings over the future of both Dr Mizzi and Mr Schembri started to emerge in public.

First, former Labour leader Alfred Sant declared that Mizzi should step down and similar comments followed from Education Minster Evarist Bartolo and government Whip Godfrey Farrugia.

Action on the Panama Papers will be taken but only on the conclusion of the audits. My decisions are based on fact

Early in March, the possibility that Dr Mizzi would receive some form of rebuke started to be aired. In an interview with TVM, the Prime Minister for the first time said Dr Mizzi would be removed if the audit found that he had not told the truth.

The tax audit – even if it was immediately described by auditors as a ‘fake’ exercise – became the Prime Minister’s recourse when pressed on the Panama affair.

He insisted, at least 11 times, that he would not take a decision on the future of either Dr Mizzi or Mr Schembri before he had the results of the audits.

Mixed into that position was the assertion that he would pay attention to public concerns and the message being sent by the people.

On April 8, in the closing address of Labour’s general conference – before which expectations had been raised that Dr Muscat was about to announce Dr Mizzi’s sacking – he again deferred the decision.

“Action on the Panama Papers will be taken but only on the conclusion of the audits. My decisions are based on fact,” he told his audience.

He was to stick by that stand up until last Thursday, when in a reversal he said there was no longer the need to wait for an audit – initial indications suggested there were no illegalities or money involved so he felt confident enough to make a decision.

The audits would be published once they were concluded, he added.

So while retaining Mr Schembri as his chief of staff he took away Dr Mizzi’s portfolio in what he called a “rebuke”, but kept him by his side within his office.

Dr Mizzi’s first assignment, he said, was to oversee the completion of the power station project.

“As you can see, I take decisions,” he told journalists.