He uses his personal e-mail account to give highly important decision-making instructions and ignores the rules which are there for a democratic purpose.

This is a lie.

The only time permanent secretaries were removed and replaced en bloc was following the 2013 election.

As they say “il-hutha min rasha tinten”.

He should be ashamed to have come out with something like this.

What an example to the thousands of civil servants he purports to head!

When asked about the objective of removing the risk of fire to the National Library, he referred to the PL’s electoral manifesto.

In fact there is no reference in the manifesto to the National Library, even less to the need to remove the fire risk.

So Mario Cutajar lied to the NAO – the Auditor General was too polite to spell it out.

The relevant paragraph from the NAO report follows: “3.4.25 :Enquiring on the first objective, that is, the removal of possible danger to the National Library, specifically in the sense of what policy inputs fed into this decision-making process, the PPS made reference to the Partit Laburista’s electoral manifesto. The PPS proceeded to state that reference in this context was in general terms and highlighted the importance of the National Library as well as other libraries. The NAO reviewed the aforementioned electoral manifesto and noted that the only reference made to the National Library indicated a general strengthening of this Institution; hence, any link between the manifesto and the above policy objective is not so clear or evident.”

This is the same one who stated that ‘people of trust’ were needed in high positions in the Public Service after 25 years (sic) of PN government, in other words, advocating cronyism.

The impression is one of panic, the words and tribulations of a serf.

And it cannot be for Mario Cutajar to ignore the Estacode; a set of regulations which does not allow any political interference or direct instructions of this sort.

I understand this is one for both the PSC and PAC. Perhaps Martin Scicluna might oblige to delve into this mess.

I am sick to the stomach of seeing journalists thankful for information which is theirs by right.

A case in point is Times of Malta’s story about MEPA stonewalling. Have they forgotten the Aarhus Convention?

Seems like everyone has forgotten the right to access to information and the obligation to report to particular bodies such as the National Audit Office, Ombudsman, etc – so I would not be surprised if the principal permanent secretary/cabinet secretary thinks information is vouchsafed rather then obligatory.

If the PN made this point, it will be ignored by half the population while the PM rubbishes it with a smirk.

It is the independent media who should make this point. They are the ones who should thoroughly question every word of press releases and not simply reprint then as facts.

But the independent media haven’t learned that from the Gzira shooting incident.