Grieving family members of Daphne Caruana Galizia, including her husband, son, and sister, were been left waiting on courthouse steps last Monday, hours after her brutal murder, Opposition MP Jason Azzopardi said today.
The family members were left waiting until 10.30pm by Magistrate Consuelo Scerri Herrera, Dr Azzopardi told parliament.
The MP said he waited with the persons in question for the magistrate to issue a decree regarding her recusal from the case, which was then issued the following day at 9.15am.
Furthermore, the victim's body parts had been left “strewn on the ground” in the field where she died until Tuesday evening, when their removal was ordered by Magistrate Anthony Vella, who replaced Magistrate Scerri Herrera following her recusal. The new magistrate had also done them the courtesy of visiting their home, instead of sending for them to visit him.
It is the latest saga in the shocking murder of the journalist killed by a car bomb in Bidnija just metres away from her home.
Dr Azzopardi went on to lash out at the Police Commissioner, saying that everybody, including the Prime Minister knew that he was not fit for purpose, despite his personal affability.
The police corps was in a bad state despite having 12 assistant commissioners and four deputy commissioners, more than the Metropolitan Police. The army, once a proud institution, had been taken over by the Labour Party immediately after the 2013 election, with promotions still being investigated by the Ombudsman.
Dr Azzopardi made reference to various editorials and opinion pieces published in the Labour-leaning media, among them an editorial by the now Justice Toni Abela, who had heavily criticised the costs arising from round-the-clock protection of Ms Caruana Galizia prior to 2010. Nobody, least of all himself, would ask how much the Prime Minister’s security arrangements cost the taxpayer, because “he has a right to them.”
Government MPs hit back
Justice Minister Owen Bonnici accused Dr Azzopardi of once again leaving several facts out in his condemnation of the Labour Party’s attitude towards the deceased, failing to mention the five libels instituted against her by PN leader Adrian Delia.
"One’s belief in the freedom of expression was tested when one was criticised, not when one was praised," he said.
While condemning the incident, Government MP Rosianne Cutajar said Ms Caruana Galizia's writings had destroyed families, wounded various persons, celebrated deaths, and were sometimes completely fabricated.
Dr Bonnici said MPs should at least unite in defending their country abroad. He had been faced by various foreign journalists who asked questions which seemed to have been fed to them by the Opposition, as they knew too many particulars.
He said the government had led a two-pronged attempt to strengthen freedom of expression during the past four years, starting with the removal of various laws censoring artists and continuing with the ongoing attempts to remove criminal libel and to make it harder for politicians to win libel cases against journalists.