Looks like they’re turning the Attorney-General into a government stooge
Published:
December 9, 2013 at 1:13am
In The Sunday Times today:
The government decided to drop a Land Department case against the Labour Party to take back the Australia Hall property in Pembroke on the Attorney General’s advice, according to Parliamentary Secretary Michael Farrugia
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Why is this outrageous decision by Muscat’s government not considered a scandal by the press?
What happened to the Xarabank producers? Has their independence been clipped? Under the PN government they were full of enthusiasm about a good story.
Not when the Chinese are bankrolling you.
This is akin to having Henley & Partners acting as the due diligence agent for their own sales team for the Maltese passports.
As minister George Vella said, all is fine in Kiev:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2520405/Ukraine-crowd-topples-beheads-Lenins-statue-Hundreds-thousands-demonstrators-streets-Kiev-protest-presidents-increasing-links-Moscow.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-65TKq1I14
Yes, just a couple of dozen students fooling around.
Yes, just some “abjetti”.
Quite, yesterday 500,000 people took to the streets in protest. That’s more than the Maltese population.
If it’s not the money, the payment in kind is also there…..
Liars and the AG has to comply.
I’m speechless! Unbelievable
Ok, some maths. When does the current Chief Justice retire?
2018, unless they change the rules.
Next election?
2018 (Late)
Odds of Joey nominating next Chief Justice?
High.
Answer = 4
The Attorney General can, and should, speak for himself.
Inkredibbli imma kemm hawna laqa f’dal-pajjiz. Nies li saru “nies” fi zmien iehor.
The Attorney General is allowing himself to be turned into a government stooge.
I would resign rather than do something l don’t agree with. It’s not as if he’s not going to find alternative employment.
Legalised theft. And then they make a fuss about a homemade clock. For shame.
Shame and Labour. It’s just not in their books.
Shame on those so called intelligent people who helped elect these scoundrels to power.
Really not impressed! Everybody seems to have thrown gentlemanly-behaviour out of the window.
The “left” leaning press would also like NGOs to be government stooges:
They remind us readers that “Jiddeciedi l-gvern” .. I think the press needs a crash course of what civil society’s role is, instead of accusing NGOs of playing some dangerous game (ie independent critique of governments).
http://www.orizzont.com.mt/FullArticle.php?ID1='Editorjal'&ID2=114055
The bottom line is the “left-leaning” press and opinion in Malta is Stalinist-Fascist.
The post of the Attorney General is protected by all the necessary constitutional safeguards that ensure s/he can never be turned into a political stooge by any party in government.
Hence, if the AG’s actions may be perceived as those of a government stooge or political tool, then it is only through the choice of the AG himself acting on his own free will, on the basis of inherent political allegiances, or perhaps, out of the need to ensure his own survival in the current political climate.
After all, one may remark that Dr. Grech is one of the few survivors of the 2013 post electoral ‘purges’, and at the time, we wondered about that.
The Attorney General’s power in our political setup is quite simply underestimated. His judicial role often spills over into legislative and executive.
Quite often it is the government which becomes the AG’s stooge. This happens when the government has no clear position on an issue, or when they wish to pass on the buck, and go to the AG for “advice”.
The AG then blindly reads the rule-book and rules one way or the other. What should have been a political decision by the executive branch then becomes a decision by the AG dressed up in jurisprudential language.
Because of the excessive power of legal professionals and the judiciary in Malta, the AG’s word carries a certain authority which eclipses even that of the PM, because the AG is seen as non-partisan.
We all know that AG doesn’t always get it right. But he is the ultimate arbiter and there is no way for the ordinary citizen to seek redress. Malta has a lopsided trias politica, but we seem to be happy with that.
The Opposition should demand that the government publish the AG’s advice.
And we are still waiting for the publication of the AG’s advice about the John Dalli case.
Even if it was, Farrugia should ‘set an example’ as he did with Polidano.
Are we being assured the Labour Party will proceed with restoration? Indeed, what does Labour, the party, intend to do now?
Can the next Nationalist government open the case again?
Possibly, that is unless the plan to pass this land to the Chinese for their new embassy goes through.
Ask for them by name; “MLP – The Original”. Forget about PL, LP, New Labour, Moviment and all the crap.
It would be good to know how many similar cases have been dropped by the government in the last 3 years against tenants misusing state-owned buildings.
By the way, public buildings should not be used for commercial purposes. Has the AG advised on how the PL plan to lease this property for commercial purposes?