So now we know: the Labour Party has somehow got hold of George Farrugia’s statement to the police

Published: February 22, 2013 at 10:08am

Last night on Bondi+, Labour candidate Gino Cauchi went armed with a sheaf of papers which he seemed to need to bolster his argument that the finance minister had received a gift worth Eur5,000 from oil dealer George Farrugia.

When the finance minister said he plans to take legal action today against anyone repeating the allegation, Cauchi put down his papers and changed the subject.

But they must have had a little chat about it over on the fourth floor of Labour HQ, because this morning Labour candidate Chris Cardona was on TVAM, again with Tonio Fenech, saying that the gift was a Maltese clock.

Juru kemm jafu, insomma. True Maltese clocks cost way more than Eur5,000, but that’s by the by.

Fenech said yes, he does have a (reproduction) Maltese clock. Well, most homes of a certain style do, and you might as well say bingo! about somebody who has a silver teapot or a credenza. He said it cost nowhere near Eur5,000 and it certainly was not a gift from George Farrugia, that if Farrugia said that, then he’s lying.

Then it emerged that Cardona – which means, the Labour Party – has a copy of George Farrugia’s lengthy statement to the police. The Labour Party could only have got hold of this from the police (illegally) or from George Farrugia’s lawyer, Franco Debono (unethically).

The implications of both are extremely serious.If the Labour Party got copies of investigation documents from the police, then what we have here is further evidence that Labour has an inherently criminal mindset and that it has no respect for institutions.

This is very, very serious. We have to consider that if they think nothing of undermining institutions, the separation of powers and the safe process of justice while they are still in Opposition, they are going to happily cross all boundaries and pervert or subvert systems – and think nothing of it – when they are in government.

In other words, the Golden Years mentality and attitude are still there.

The alternative scenario is that Labour got a copy of George Farrugia’s statement from his lawyer, Franco Debono. The implications of this are grave, and reporters should confront him immediately to give him the opportunity to clear his name if it is not the case.

But if this is what happened, then what we have here is a lawyer acting against his client’s interests and undermining his brief, because he has put his own personal desires and perceived interests ahead of those of his client.

The consequences of Farrugia’s lawyer (if indeed this happened) colluding with the Labour Party (or any other political party, for that matter) are the undermining of due process, the weakening of the investigation and prosecution, and the putting of George Farrugia’s pardon, which is conditional, at risk.

We have seen that from the outset, Labour was worried and upset that Farrugia was allowed to turn state’s evidence, and has used Super One and the statements of its politicians to attack and undermine that pardon.

In parading its possession of a copy of George Farrugia’s statement to the police, its aim may not be so much to talk about a clock which Tonio Fenech says Farrugia did not give him. Its primary aim might well be the demolition of George Farrugia’s pardon.

If Franco Debono is cooperating with Labour against his client’s interests, because it suits his own agenda against the Nationalist Party, then he is truly sick and in need of care that an ordinary GP is unable to give him.

And if the Labour Party is colluding with somebody in the police force to obtain, illegally, copies of investigation documents, then we have a whole other set of worries. The Golden Years mentality remains. When they are in power, they will not need to collude secretly. They can simply ring up openly and get whatever they want, and goodbye separation of powers.




32 Comments Comment

  1. La Redoute says:

    Forsi marru l-ghassa u sabu pulizija Laburist.

    Jew forsi marru ghand avukat Laburist liebes ta’ Nazzjonalist.

  2. Alex says:

    The roots are starting to show. Old MLP machine is back up and running in a state of panic, with one mistake more grievous than the previous.

    PN got them where they wanted, most probably at the moment a huge battle between the old vs new strategists is going on on the 4th floor. Would love to be there.

  3. john says:

    The yardstick used by the Malta Labour Party in the measure of its journalistic ethics is Kurt Farrugia.

    All three feet something of him.

  4. Michelle pirotta says:

    And The Times didnt even bother with a headline on the Joe Cordina story.

    • NGT says:

      … and yet the drug bust of a PN club three years ago made it to the ToM.com headlines this morning. Timing was a bit too perfect methinks. Obviously the ‘imbasta jitkazaw’ comments came in thick and fast.

    • Makjavel says:

      Something tells me that somebody at Allied Newspapers has made his own Faustian pact.

  5. afm says:

    Did you have any doubt that the Golden Years mentality is still not there? Of course it was. It was there all the time festering and waiting for the right moment in time to erupt.

    And it will always be there because the mentality that supports it live right next to you and me.

    You meet it anywhere and everywhere. In the shops (rude salespersons), on the beach (illegal boathouses), in govt. offices (arrogant clerks), in schools (pretentious students). And it goes on and on.

    A person who is maturely intelligent says: “How little I know”, and his attitude is one of humility. However, a person who is ignorant but got an education says: “I’m the best”, there’s no one who understands better than I do.

    Everybody else is wrong and I have the right to do what I deem is right. I’ll steal, lie, borrow and cheat. I’ll do anything it takes as long as I come out on top.

  6. old-timer says:

    The real pity is that the “hordes” do not know anything of what is going on, and even worse, if they know, they do not understand the gravity of it all. “Joseph has spoken – Long Live Joseph”

    • Tabatha White says:

      In a nutshell, this is the crux of it.

      How best to communicate? With pictures? on Billboards?

      Probably the best tool would be a little booklet, the size of a cigarette packet, that illustrates the why on the left and puts the fact, ethical point and consequence prioritized in point form on the right. It would need to fit easily in a bag or a back pocket.

      They each need to be given the opportunity, and privacy, to absorb this for themselves with pertinent facts in hand. In a language that they understand.

  7. Francis Saliba MD says:

    The Commissioner of Police is duty bound to investigate the prima facie evidence suggesting that there is a mole in his department and that Labour-leaning police constables are abusing their duty to enforce the law without fear or favour.

    • Tabatha White says:

      Thanks. I think it’s absolutely necessary to spell out and clarify the procedural requirement of what is unfolding before us.

    • Raffaella says:

      This is a really serious. Surely the Commissioner of Police should take action.

      Re the hordes of people who do not understand how democracy works, it is not only the benchmark of most of the movement’s supporters.

      Alas it is also the benchmark of those P.N. members and supporters, who because of a real or perceived misdemeanor towards them from the part of the government, are not going to vote. And it is the latter who will cost us all that we gained in Nationalist government times.

    • Homer S. says:

      Il-partit Laburista qed juza (sehh l-istess ghall-press conference dwar l-emails) lil Evarist Bartolo ghal din il-press conference, biex jinhbew wara li l-iskuza li hu “gurnalist”.

      B’hekk fil-kaz li gurnalisti (kif gara) jew il-pulizija, jsaqsu dwar minn fejn kiseb dik l-informazzjoni dwar il-Ministru Tonio Fenech, ikun jista’ jinheba wara l-protezzjoni li ttih il-ligi dwar ir-relazzjoni bejn il-gurnalisti u s-sorsi taghhom.

  8. aston says:

    This was my reaction exactly on reading the clock story in The Times. Tonio Fenech said he was not privy to the information given to the police in contrast to the PL that claims it has the info.

    If anything, that’s a bigger scandal than any clock story!

    Of course there is always the possibility that the PL have been misled/are lying and George Farrugia never really claimed he gave a gift to Tonio Fenech.

  9. AllIWantIsToLiveInPeace says:

    If it was, indeed, Franco Debono, then should he not be debarred for his action?

    [Daphne – Debarring is the result of a prison term of (I think) two years. It cannot be done on a complaint.]

  10. Nazzjonalista says:

    Ma jifilhux jaqaw iktar ghan-nejk!

  11. bookworm says:

    I am no antique expert, and I don’t know the exact value of an authentic one, however if one were to order a replica, this would cost somewhere in the region of €2,000.

  12. Carmen borg says:

    Honestly I feel really sick even reading about these corrupt nerds. How can they have the guts to go on air with so much crap chirping about a clock when they are in so much trouble?

    So now they’re trying to alienate the public with a clock, to divert attention from their financial administrator who resigned last night.

  13. European says:

    The Labour Party will never change. They do not care about anything or anyone. They just want to be in power again.

  14. bystander says:

    Blimey, aren’t Maltese elections fun.

    Two more weeks of gripping drama.

  15. Rita Camilleri says:

    I don’t know about you, but these things scare the hell out of me.

    They are doing these vile, horrible things and they are still in opposition, so can you image if they are elected?

    They can change their logo, their name, the colour, but they will never never change themselves. I feel sorry for our children.

    • Sandra says:

      So true. And then you have some people proud of their COMING OUT in saying that they support Labour.

      Coming out? They were always Labour, but in the political closet not to upset anyone. Now they feel it’s safe and fashionable to own up to what they always were, but too embarrassing to own up to having been Labour even through the KMB and Sant years, and in some cases, even the Mintoff years.

  16. Natalie says:

    This is precisely what worries me. They act criminally and arrogantly, and are blatant about it.

    Bla biza’ ta’ xejn.

  17. Sonia says:

    This is quite clearly a sign that worse is to come.

    If Labour can manipulate the police now, what will they be doing once they are at the country’s helm?

    Let it be a warning to all those 40-somethings concerned with fripperies, trivialities and spite to reconsider their abstaining from voting/their voting for Labour: Do you really your children and your children’s children to experience life under old Labour? Il-vera qabda cwiec jekk dak huwa l-kas.

  18. Candida says:

    People who have sense and a shred of intelligence in their brains quickly come to the conclusion that yes, Labour are trying to undermine the pardon given to George Farrugia, so that the truth will NOT come out.

  19. Jozef says:

    If anyone needed further proof.

    ‘Finance Minister Tonio Fenech’s “panicky” reaction to claims that he had received a gift worth over €5,000 from rogue oil trader George Farrugia were tantamount to intimidating a state witness, Labour leader Joseph Muscat said this morning.’

    The Times.

  20. Pro says:

    Shades of the eighties.

  21. Andrew says:

    I Think it is absolutely disgusting. I also think these playground tactics played on both sides should show the nation of Malta, that both sides are not fit to be in charge of the country. This is election time, and they are both using “playground” tactics to soil each others name. If the people of Malta had any sense, they would vote for any party which is actually taking notice of the public’s interests, and not in this childish escapade. But my fears will always know that despite all this, they will still go “Red or Blue” instead of voting for a party who will actually do the island some good. If the Maltese REALLY want to see change, and they want a much improved way of life, then the best course of action is to STAY AT HOME on election day.

  22. Betty Boob says:

    Oh Gosh! What else now? An ICE-Watch for Toni?

  23. GABS says:

    Do not forget that the late Hon Guido DeMarco warned Mr. Pietru Paul Busuttil not to sleep while he was in hospital. These kind of people are not to be trusted because they are capable of doing anything. Same old regime, they never change.

  24. Peter Grech says:

    I believe it is possible to obtain the statement by the defence team from the court if it implicates their client as they will need this to prepare their evidence…not 100% sure at which stage it can happen but it will need to happen as very often the witness will be counter examined by the defence and would need their statement to look for ‘loop holes’.

    [Daphne – Well, yes, obviously, the defence team has a copy of the statement. That’s just what we’re saying: that it was either the police or the defence lawyers who leaked it to Labour.]

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