GUEST POST: How did we get here?

This was written by Julian Borg and sent in as a comment, but I think it deserves proper attention as a guest post.

I spent hours crouched in front of my laptop watching the Public Accounts Committee grilling of top officials at Enemalta and raising eyebrows at the limited policy documents available to guide the purchase committee on fuel purchase.

The Labour members of that committee went to great lengths to try to verbally admonish these officials for not having a formal policy and trying to ascertain Austin Gatt’s influence.

They quizzed the members every which way; the insinuation being that the Minister directed the fuel purchase.

They looked everywhere but found absolutely no political interference in the oil purchase process. Not an iota of interference.

While this witch hunt was underway, Minister Conrat was busy negotiating a fuel purchase – not aimed at giving Malta the best deal possible – no, not that, but a fuel purchase aimed solely at reducing prices at the pumps by two frigging cents. THAT is what the National Audit Office report has revealed.

The Minister responsible for setting policy not only does not set policy, but like his buddy Premier Joseph did with Cafe Premier, goes behind the backs of the electorate to negotiate directly with one of the most corrupt regimes in the world, with diplomats, top civil servants and other experienced negotiators suspiciously absent from a negotiating party composed solely of himself, the prime minister, the prime minister’s head of secretariat Keith Schembri, and the prime minister’s communications man Kurt Farrugia.

They return to Malta and the PM announces with great pomp and ceremony, that fuel prices were to be reduced by 2 cents. We now start to understand why that press conference stood out like a sore thumb.

It was cynical beyond belief. The PAC members shaking their heads and Justyne Caruana coaxing Enemalta officials to admit ministerial interference that did not exist during Austin Gatt’s time, whist at the same time the current Minister negotiates directly with Baku and then instructs Enemalta to hedge (read long term contract here) directly with a corrupt nation, while cynically announcing a two-cent reduction in an attempt to camouflage political interference that ultimately cost the taxpayer €14 million.

“Wake up and smell the (Premier) coffee” and “Rahhasna l-petrol b’ zewg centezmi” now sound like sick jokes made by Premier Joe while he and his party were enjoying the ‘fruits of their backroom dealings’ at our expense.

Let’s face it, if you can lease your worthless Alfa saloon car back to yourself for €70K and send your wife to China on a salary of €13,000 a month for no job and with no discernible office address, you do not have the moral fibre to run the country and would have no qualms funding the Taghna Lkoll (cash) movement.

How did we get here?