The House of Representatives is today expected to approve motions for the appointment of Anthony Mifsud as Ombudsman; Charles Deguara as Auditor-General and Noel Camilleri as Deputy Auditor-General.
The motions were moved by Environment Minister Leo Brincat on behalf of the prime minister and seconded by Opposition whip David Agius.
The motions need to be supported by at least two-thirds of the members of the House.
Mr Brincat said the nominees had vast importance in the public service. He thanked all those who held the same posts in the past, particularly Joe Sammut, who set up the first Office of the Ombudsman 20 years ago.
He augured that more people would be aware of the important role of the Ombudsman.
While some could be critical of some decisions, it was important that the institutions themselves were not attacked, he said.
Mario de Marco, deputy leader of the opposition, said authority should be exercised without abuse. There could not be democracy without accountability, responsibility, transparency and good governance. The voice of the ordinary people should be heard not just at elections, but every day.
Joseph Said Pullicino, the outgoing Ombudsman, and Anthony Mifsud, who was the outgoing Auditor-General had been protectors of the people and had exercised their functions for the common good and the good of ordinary citizens. The Auditor-General had revealed abuses regarding Cafe Premier, Socar and the Zachary Street expropriation, among others, and the Ombudsman had even taken the government to court over the issue of AFM promotions.
Dr de Marco said the PN is proposing that key officials such as the AFM commander and the Commissioner of Police should also be nominated with the support of two-thirds of the House.
He thanked Prof Said Pullicino for his loyalty, seriousness and correctness while serving on the Bench and more recently as Ombudsman. He also thanked Mr Mifsud for his service as Auditor-General and said he had no doubt that his long experience would serve him well as Ombudsman. He was also confident that Mr Deguara would serve as Auditor-General with the same standard as his predecessor, ably assisted by Mr Camilleri.
Concluding, Mr Brincat said he had refrained from mentioning the oil procurement scandal, BWSC or the scandal of Radio Mediterranean, among other cases, but the holders of these offices had handled delicate cases under both administrations.
He said the government would continue to heed the views of these offices and would continue to give them the tools to function efficiently. Political accountability was important in a democracy and this government therefore had moved a law which held politicians to account for corruption without prescription.
At the end of the debate all MPs present - 59 - voted in favour of the motions.