Is this pay-back time as well?
timesofmalta.com, this evening:
Opposition backs Debono’s motion on justice, home affairs – Jose Herrera
The Opposition spokesman for justice, Jose’ Herrera, said this evening that the Opposition backed Franco Debono’s private motion for reforms in justice and home affairs.
He said that while the Oposition might not agree fully with all the 24 points made in the motion, it agreed with most of them since they were common to the motion which the Opposition itself had debated.
Dr Herrera was speaking after Dr Debono concluded his introduction to the debate on his motion in a speech which took almost three sittings. (…)
I have to say this: I’m beginning to look at last year’s private member’s bill on divorce in a new light.
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Re your last line, it’s rather surprising it took you so long. Wasn’t all that merry-making and hugging and kissing as soon as the referendum result was known enough to make us think that way?
Maybe it is worth reminding JPO of this:
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20080429/local/mlp-hits-out-at-new-pullicino-orlando-comment.206095
Of course you are! And the picture of JPO with Varist which you posted earlier was classic.
Trouble is, the threads were there but got lost in translation, particularly Franco’s shenanigans.
Just as well to wonder if Franco did not receive some inspiration (instigation?) from JPO and Mugliett. And not ruling out others.
The strategy seems to be to work on personal weaknesses such as envy, vanity, megalomania, etc and use these to weaken the government. All’s fair in love and war, I suppose, but what goes around comes around.
Trouble is, it may take time and we shall have to groan heartily for it.
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20120620/local/pn-executive-condemns-jpo-mugliett-and-debono.425221
And about f**king time, too.
You scratch my back and I will scratch yours.
More like I sniff your backside whilst you suck my noodle.
Or rather, in Malta: “You scratch my back and I’ll f * * * yours”
^Cahoots’ is certainly in vogue among the treacherous. I am certain that it will come back and bite them in the ass.
The Times reports the following too:
“A very worrying aspect, he said, was how the Attorney General had discretion to decide whether an accused person should appear before a magistrate or a judge, with huge differences in the sentence which could imposed. There was no law to direct the AG. His discretion was absolute, and he was not even required to motivate his decisions.”
I’d love to know what on earth Debono is smoking. Although prima facie, it seems as if he’s right, in reality, this couldn’t be further from the truth.
The law, as it stands, is pretty clear.
If the offence which the accused is charged with falls under Article 370(3) of the Criminal Code, i.e. it is an offence falling within the extended competence of the Court of Magistrates as a Court of Criminal Judicature, and therefore the accused is liable to a sentence between six months and ten years imprisonment (although it must be noted that this article is subject to the provisions of Article 370(4)), the Attorney General has the option of filing the bill of indictment or sending the case to be tried before the Court of Magistrates after the inquiry has been held.
Hence, till this point, one could argue that Debono is indeed correct in what he’s saying.
However, the consent of the accused must also be sought before the case proceeds before the said Court of Magistrates. If the accused does not consent to his case being tried summarily, the case goes before the Criminal Court.
It must be noted that the AG often gives his consent for the case in question to be tried summarily in such an instance, simply because trials by jury are incredibly resource intensive and time consuming.
Therefore, the ultimate discretion, it can be argued, lies with the accused, and not the Attorney General.
It must also be noted that Article 370(4) of the Criminal Code has directed that the Court of Magistrates as a Court of Criminal Judicature must decide a case whereby the accused is subject to a period of imprisonment between six months and four years.
Here, the Attorney General has given his written consent for the said court to hear the case, and the accused must also give his consent for the case to be heard summarily.
More than looking at the actual vote on divorce in a new light, one is best served by being more specific and revisiting the PM’s decision to vote against the introduction of divorce even after the PN had lost the referendum on divorce. The PM should have done the right thing and (1) expressed his personal opposition to divorce; (2) explained that as Head of Government it was his duty to bow to the people’s will and lead his party in voting to enact the people’s decision expressed by way of a referendum despite his personal feelings and then (3) reshuffled his cabinet to bring in new blood including people from the back benches who are undermining the government today. Had he done these three things he would have stood a fighting chance of leading his party to an unprecedented fourth electoral victory.
As things stand the PM is presiding over a government that is fast coming apart at the seams. In addition as party leader he is presiding over a party that is split between religio et patria conservatives who are hogging the government’s microphone and bully pulpit and liberals who feel excluded and sidelined and are voting with their feet. It is not hard to see the writing on the wall – a landslide victory for the Labour Party of historic proportions.
Meanwhile the PM remains hunkered down in his bunker with the same old cabinet, the PN executive condemns the three dissenting MPs, you are suing one of the MPs and contributing to the circus. And nobody seems to be listening to the electorate that simply wants the government to get its act together and show that it has what it takes to lead the country.
The electorate is tired of this circus. It’s watching football instead and discussing next Sunday’s match, excited about the free to air digital Italian stations which started to transmit lately and grumbling about the heat wave.