Prime Minister Joseph Muscat must have got used trying to defend the indefensible and to give the impression things are right when he knows they are wrong, if not sinisterly bad.
He did it when his closest aide and a Cabinet colleague were exposed as owning secret companies in Panama. He repeated it when the same two gentlemen were named in leaked Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit reports in connection with suspected money-laundering activities.
Dr Muscat did it countless times and continues doing it. Many people believe him and swallow whatever he says but that does not make right what is wrong. When engaging in such antics, the Prime Minister may be desperately trying to do some damage control and managing crises but for people who are able to think and who do not only care about the colour of money what he would be doing is digging further the hole he knowingly leapt into.
The manner in which he fielded questions on the Neville Gafà saga earlier this week betrayed signs of administrative fatigue, if not loss of control.
A “government official” – that is how Mr Gafà was described though his precise title and function remain unclear - travels to Tripoli, is photographed meeting senior Libyan government members and is described as the Prime Minister’s special envoy. When asked about the matter, the Office of the Prime Minister simply declares Mr Gafà was not on official government business.
But things got juicier when it emerged that Mr Gafà was seen speaking to a militia leader too during that visit, which, it should be pointed out, he insisted was a private one during which he met personal friends. In the militia leader’s case, Mr Gafà claimed he had bumped into him in the street, no more.
As it happens, this gentleman has a colourful background, having been accused of demanding payments from Libyan nationals to issue medical visas allowing them entry into Malta. A police investigation had found no evidence to substantiate the claims but he had been moved out of the Health Ministry and eventually given a desk somewhere in the Prime Minister’s Office.
His contract with the FMS was formally terminated a few days ago on orders of Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne but the Prime Minister insisted this was just a transfer. Dr Muscat did not indicate Mr Gafà was no longer in government employ. In fact, he was seen at Castille shortly after the Prime Minister spoke to journalists on the matter.
In the circumstances, one is justified to wonder whether the Prime Minister and his deputy harbour different views on how to deal with people like Mr Gafà. Likewise, they will wonder where Mr Gafà gets his ‘power’ from. And why did Foreign Minister Carmelo Abela not order an inquiry to find out what made the Libyan government describe Mr Gafà as the Prime Minister’s special envoy?
Evidently, there is unwillingness at Castille to get to the bottom of things. The survival of a person employed on a position of trust basis seems to be more valuable than the Prime Minister’s own credibility and standing.
Regrettably, the law does not allow a citizen to challenge position-of-trust appointments even when a person, like Mr Gafà, cannot be trusted.
This is a Times of Malta print editorial