The Nationalist Party yesterday presented a motion in Parliament challenging a ruling given by the Speaker earlier this week.

Following the presentation of a motion to censure the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, Keith Schembri, for his conduct in relation to his business interests and his public office, Speaker Anġlu Farrugia ruled that Mr Schembri was not censurable by the House because he was not a member of Parliament.

However, his ruling is now being challenged as, according to the Opposition, Dr Farrugia’s ruling is completely wrong and does not result from the provisions of the standing orders.

Addressing journalists before the presentation of the motion, PN MPs Francis Zammit Dimech and David Agius recalled a similar motion in 2012 presented by the then Labour Opposition.

The motion, which was debated in various sessions, asked Parliament to censure Richard Cachia Caruana, then Malta’s Permanent Representative to the EU.

We cannot understand how the same Dr Farrugia has now decided against his own arguments

The motion was approved after a former PN MP, Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando, had voted with the Opposition. Mr Cachia Caruana had resigned soon after.

“What’s good for the goose is good for the gander,” Dr Zammit Dimech said yesterday while stressing that the Opposition would not accept a two weights and two measures situation.

He quoted a newspaper article penned by Speaker Anġlu Farrugia, then deputy leader of the Labour Party, in which he emphasised that in the case of Cachia Caruana, Parliament had every right to scrutinise the operations of all the government.

“We cannot understand how the same Dr Farrugia has now decided against his own arguments,” Dr Zammit Dimech said.

PN whip David Agius said that since Parliament was the highest democratic institution in the country, it had the right to censure anyone who was appointed by the government.

“We think that Mr Schembri, who enjoys the personal trust of the Prime Minister, is no exception” he said.

It has been revealed that the Prime Minister’s chief of staff has opened secret trading companies in Panama and the British Virgin Islands. However, Dr Muscat has decided to keep him in his position and reiterated full trust in Mr Schembri.