(Adds government's reply)

The protection former assistant commissioner Ray Zammit was being given seemed to indicate he had information about the government and the Prime Minister which the government did not want divulged, Opposition leader Simon Busuttil said this morning.

Speaking on Radio 101 this morning, Dr Busuttil said an inquiry report by Judge Michael Mallia made it clear that there was a link between the Zammit and Gaffarena families and a murder investigation.

Both families enjoyed government protection that was coming from the top and this exhibited a link between power, money and criminality.

“These are dangerous links… alarming… All this is happening under the Prime Minister’s nose. And since he is not taking action, he must have given his blessing,” Dr Busuttil said.

He said there was total silence following the inquiry with no action being taken whatsoever.

“What does Ray Zammit know about the Prime Minister and the government, for the Prime Minister to continue protecting him in this way,” Dr Busuttil asked noting that Mr Zammit was still the acting prisons director and the head of the Wardens Agency.

Moreover, he was still receiving a Police Commissioner’s salary and still had a driver.

The inquiry, Dr Busuttil said, was a slap in the face for the police force but, for the government, it was as if nothing was happening.

The people, he said, expected the police force to protect them and not the criminals.

He stressed that there was an urgent need to change the way politics was being done in Malta for trust in the government to be regained. A good clean sweep was needed.

“This is the most corrupt government we have had since Mintoff and Lorry Sant," he said.

“Some believe that we should fight the government by also being corrupt ourselves. I do not agree. We should be honest and use the people’s money wisely rather than to pay for corruption… The money being spent on corruption could be used for medicine and road building, for example,” Dr Busuttil said.

GOVERNMENT'S REPLY

In a reply, the government said the Opposition leader again chose to speak negatively about the inquiry ordered by the Prime Minister.

Rather than throw around baseless insinuations, one would have expected the leader of the Opposition to speak about the main cases which took place under the government led by his party and which this government investigated.

He should also say what he thought about Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici and Beppe Fenech Adami who were responsible for the police force when the said cases took place.

The government, it said, had passed the inquiry to the Attorney General for all the necessary steps to be taken.